EhrenEbbage.com

2012-01-04T05:54:00.000-08:00

I've been on a documentary kick this week. 'Who is Harry Nilsson', 'No Direction Home' and Ken Burns' 'Jazz'. All great. A good documentary gives you something that you can't get just by listening to someone's music. It provides context, both artistic and personal. It's not just what was done and how they did it, but how it was influenced and why it stood out in the time it was being done that makes art important.

I find it interesting that, in spite of achieving significant success, many of these folks didn't consider themselves successful. Harry Nilsson had written hit songs, made a truly great record, and was hanging around with the Beatles and he still didn't feel like he'd made it. I suppose the relentless drive to reach unattainable heights is part of what makes a person great but it also seems to make them unhappy.

Speaking of unhappy, I'm writing this before having my coffee. I'll sign off now and put the kettle on.

2011-12-27T07:57:00.000-08:00

Okay 2011, we had a good run but it's time we go our separate ways. Seems like you want things to stay the way they are and I'm really in need of change. I'd like to try hanging out with 2012 and see what comes of it. No hard feelings.

We're back in Seattle now. We have been since mid-September and it has been great. We have a little house in West Seattle a couple of miles from Lincoln Park so we go there several times a week. Three months in and I still find the beauty of the Puget Sound to be breathtaking.

From an outside perspective it might look like we are on the lam, traveling light and leaving town whenever we feel like someone may be on to us. In the past twelve months we went from Seattle to Los Angeles to Yountville to Napa and back to Seattle. It was exhausting and exhilarating.

While in Los Angeles I found my way into the business of writing music for tv shows. Maybe you'd recognize a couple of them. Mostly they're the ones that you would only see when you're home with a cold, eating soup on the couch in front of the tv all day. So all year I devoted myself to learning the craft of writing instrumental background music for these shows, and it has been great. Year to date I've written nearly 300 little bits of music. It's the most productive year I've ever had and it feels good.

I haven't written a single song of my own, though, and didn't play a single show of my own. I don't know how to feel about that but it seems like something that needs some consideration.

So, as this year comes to its end I'm thinking about what I'd like to get done over the next 12 months. We'll see how it goes.

Interview

2011-02-01T08:10:00.000-08:00

I was interviewed this week by my great pal Leona. To read some questions and answers, go here.

So far so good...

2011-01-23T08:28:00.000-08:00

Yountville is a breath of fresh air. We walk the neighborhood streets at a relaxed pace, noticing things for the first time and waiting for all of the oranges and grapefruit to ripen. It is calm and quiet and there is room in our heads for conversation. There seems to be more time in the day for things like reading and writing and taking our dog to one of the big parks in the area to give him a chance to run around and sniff and roll...

We moved up here in a hurry so that Anna could take a job at the French Laundry. It was a dilemma; move to Yountville to pursue her career or stay in LA to pursue mine. We found a compromise...I'll travel to LA to work for a week or two each month for as long as we can stand it. Who knows how long that will last, but we're giving it a shot.

So I spent the last week in Los Angeles working sessions at The Bank. It was fun to be back in the hustle and bustle. I fell back into the studio schedule quite easily and it was a particularly fun week. Highlights included working with David Ryan Harris, who is John Mayer's touring guitar player and a very nice dude. Another project was being produced and engineered by the guys who worked on The Fray records and other recognizable radio hits. At the end of the week we recorded a string quartet which was quite excellent and fun to watch. I learned a ton and had a great time. I felt lucky to be there.

I'm back in Yountville now. Last night we walked down the street to a restaurant, sat on the patio in 60 degree weather, sipped beer and told stories. We walked home, stopping for a moment to sit on a park bench and watch a train decorated with Christmas lights roll by. We are worlds away from the buzzing bee hive that is Los Angeles. It feels like I have a foot in each place and I like it.

Bull riding?

2011-01-12T09:05:00.000-08:00

The days have flown by me like a three-trailer big rig; loud and leaving me in a gust of wind with my hands covering my face to protect from the kicked-up debris.

Perhaps a more accurate description would be a Kansas-style tornado. Wife, dog, myself and our entire household picked up, whirled around for who knows how long, and set down in a strange new place.

Turns out we are in Yountville, California, a town of 3,000 in the Napa Valley, and we have come here by our own will. My wife was offered the job of her dreams at a restaurant called The French Laundry and we simply could not refuse.

Not two weeks ago we were maneuvering our lives through the 'jungle', to quote Axl Rose, of West Hollywood. We had been living there for 3 months or so and had learned our way around, made friends, found our favorite movie theaters and thrift stores, found the shortest way to the beach and felt mostly comfortable in the smoggy surroundings. Then, she got the call, and for the third time in 15 months we packed up our few things into our two little cars and drove away.

Now, we live in a little studio apartment sublet to us by a friendly local. There is quiet all around us. We hear the cars and trucks on Highway 29 and not much else other than the sounds made by the breeze and the wildlife. Nobody yelling, no car alarms, no horns honking, no sirens or helicopters. We drive with no concern for the schedule of rush hour because there is no traffic to speak of. After our year in Seattle and our few months in Los Angeles, this place feels like a highway rest stop and real life is speeding by out there on the asphalt.

I felt a little disoriented at first. We left a sweet situation in a city where I could work in the music industry every day with some very inspiring and exciting folks. My job as an assistant engineer provided a relatively steady income and I was learning a lot, and fast. I was writing songs with hit songwriters, playing music with friends in legendary venues, and having an all-around fantastic time doing it. Now, we live in a place where the local music scene seems to consist of people strumming gentle acoustic guitar music in the corners of tasting rooms in wineries.

I was worried, to say the least. What would I do? Who would I hang out and talk shop with? How would I make a living?

The truth is that the size of Yountville is deceiving. This area is home to some of the best restaurants and wineries in the world. When a chef reaches a certain level they turn their eyes to The French Laundry, as it is one of the most highly regarded restaurants anywhere. Presumably, the friends and acquaintances we will make here will be talented, skilled, driven people at the top of their respected fields. Master craftspeople and artists in their own way. I think it will be a very exciting and inspiring place to live for a while. I'll be exposed to new things, new people, and I'll be motivated to reach the high standard of excellence that is part of the culture here. I'm not exactly sure how I'll make a living but that is nothing new and I have some ideas. I'm not sure how I'll make musician friends but I can always drive an hour into San Francisco and hang out with my buddies there.

I have always enjoyed throwing myself into new situations. It's exciting. It's a form of bull-riding for those averse to broken bones. Grab the rope with one hand, your hat with the other, and call for the chute to open and let you out.

LA update

2010-11-18T08:11:00.000-08:00

I spent the last week in Oregon. Played a couple of shows in Portland and Eugene, and had a chance to catch up with my buddies The Dimes. It rained almost the entire time I was there. I'm back in LA now and happy to be here. Things have been going quite well! Lots of fun projects, new friends and exciting opportunities.

I found a new space! It's in a warehouse downtown. I started moving in this week and I'm excited to get set up and get busy. After spending most of the year working on projects for other people I am chomping at the bit to work on one of my own. We'll see.

The space is shared with a great band, He's My Brother She's My Sister. We're gonna turn it into a modest recording studio...we have a bit of work to do. It looks like this:

Los Angeles

2010-10-28T09:02:00.000-07:00

Well, through a twisty turn of events Anna and I have found ourselves living in Los Angeles. It was a choice made intentionally and in sound body and mind.

So far, so good. We are living in an apartment just a few blocks south of the Hollywood Hills. We have eaten delicious things and we've been to the beach. Everything else is just details.

Wait, no...actually, everything else is quite exciting! I proposed the move because I wanted to push myself into a new situation. I wanted to develop new skills, start new projects and meet new people. A month and a half into the process I can say that I've already made great progress in each of these departments.

I'll give you a brief rundown.

First, my friend Zac Rae offered me a job in his excellent studio, The Bank. He owns it with drummer extraordinaire Joey Waronker. It is special. Projects I have been around for include Eleni Mandell produced by Joe Chiccarelli, Ed Romanoff and Ian Axel, both produced by John Alagia, and Carina Round produced by she and Dan Burns. It has been amazing.

Also, I have had the fantastic privilege of working with Matt Hales, aka, Aqualung. We have done a bit of writing and recording, and we played a couple of duo shows this month. It has been amazing.

There is more and there will be more to come but I have suddenly grown antsy. I'm signing off.

Ahem...

2010-08-02T10:07:00.000-07:00

Check, check...is this thing on?

This blog has been collecting some serious dust. Somehow I have fallen completely out of the habit of maintaining it. My excuse? I've been busy.

Changes are coming. New, exciting things are happening. I have been producing records for friends almost non-stop since January and they will soon be released.

I don't have much to say other than I will have something to say very soon, I think. In the meantime, check out this live video...me, joined by Kelly Masigat at the Doug Fir. Shot and edited by Grammar School.

Ehren Ebbage with Kelly Anne Masigat - "Bury That Feeling" from grammar school on Vimeo.

2010 1/2

2010-05-14T14:16:00.000-07:00

Now that we're nearly midway through 2010 I am ready to write my first blog of the year.

I haven't been playing many of my own shows. I didn't intend to take a break but I've had some fun projects come up which have occupied most of my time. My old friends Stagger and Sway asked me to help make their first full length record and a new friend Nick Dothee asked me to help make an EP. I gladly obliged.

Then, my friend Krista Polvere asked me to play guitar on her tour opening for Aqualung. I hadn't toured in a real tour bus before and I was feeling the itch to see the country again, so I said yes. It was both exhausting and exhilarating. I spent three weeks in the company of some very fine, creative folks and came home with my well of motivation overflowing. Aqualung, aka Matt Hales, turned out to be an excellent guy. He offered bits of advice that I have been needing to hear and is an example of how someone can be both a family man and a successful musician.

I'm not exactly sure what the second half of 2010 will bring. A new record? Another tour? There are some bright fuzzy shapes on the horizon...I'm excited to see what they look like close up.

The story behind the song...

2009-12-30T12:08:00.000-08:00

My pal Leona writes for MetroLyricsblog.com and she asked me to tell the story behind the song 'Snakes' for her songwriter series of articles. Would you like to know the story? Check out her blog and see a live performance of the tune here.

Young and Restless

2009-12-17T07:28:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago I decided to write a little Christmas song for fun. I'd never done it and I thought it might be a good writing exercise. I recorded it in my little garage studio and it turned out pretty well. I posted it online and sent it off to a few folks who were looking for Christmas music for various purposes...I found out yesterday that it will be featured on the Dec 22nd episode of The Young and the Restless!

It's not Grey's Anatomy, but it is the highest-rated soap on the air and it is viewed by millions of people around the world every day. I'll take it.

Want to hear the tune? Listen and download it here.

Cool critics

2009-12-11T10:17:00.000-08:00

I am not thin-skinned. I don't mind a little criticism, even if it's heavy-handed. In fact, I appreciate it when someone takes the time to listen to my music and offer a thoughtful opinion. No big deal. Lately, however, I have read a couple of reviews that really got me thinking about music criticism.

First, my pals The Dimes released a new record which has received a ton of critical praise with the exception of one cynical Portland critic. My other pal John Shipe wrote an excellent response. Read it here.

Next, I recently happened upon the site of a singer/songwriter named Allison Weiss. She released a record and has been getting some attention, including a writeup in the New York Times. One of the most notable and press-worthy aspects of her career is the fact that she seems to have mastered the social networking game and has built a pretty solid fan base by communicating with her fans directly.

So, someone in her hometown of Athens wrote this review titled "Allison Weiss and the Beiging of America" (implying that Allison represents a trend in music towards less colorful work in favor of broad appeal...this guy's blog page happens to be beige).

He doesn't care for her music as far as I can tell, but I'm not positive because instead of writing about what her music is he writes about what it isn't. As one reader noted he spends a large part of his article addressing an assertion made by another local critic...confusing, I know.

He takes issue with her talent, determination and success when it comes to self-promotion. He takes issue with her DIY status...somehow being a college student disqualifies her from being DIY...what? She's not bitter enough for him. She doesn't write about a broad enough range of topics. Her fans provide too much support. She is writing beige music for the masses. On and on.

The overall message seems to be that an artist should not have the nerve to promote their work unless it meets a certain music critic standard. If they happen to achieve some small success it must be because their fans are dumb.

To my ears, Allison seems to be writing music from an honest place. Her record isn't going to redefine the art of songwriting or record production but I don't think she was aiming for that. Her music doesn't have sharp edges or abrasive textures, but does that make it bad? Why shouldn't she make records? Why shouldn't she bust her ass to spread the word? Why is her success so distasteful?

This guy doesn't offer much insight. From reading his article you wouldn't know whether Allison sounds more like Miley Cyrus or Edie Brickell. I know that he doesn't think her record is cool, and I get some clues as to what his idea of cool is, but he offers readers no information to be able to make their own judgment.

It's a line-in-the-sand approach to music criticism. "Cool is on this side...uncool is over there...don't cross".

I should probably stop reading music reviews. They always make me feel so uncool.

My office

2009-12-02T10:13:00.000-08:00

I have a serious fascination with recording studios and music work spaces. I absolutely love being in the environment. I geek out looking at studio pics on recording forums like Gearslutz and TapeOp...I thought it was about time that I post pics of the space where I work.

Shortly after moving to Seattle, my friends from the band Reily offered me the use of their little studio space. They let me move all of my gear in and set up shop. It's modest; just a tiny one car garage with some drywall and carpet, but it is a great space for me to work without distraction. I love it.

Decorations are courtesy of Grant and Dave.

I wrote a Christmas song...

2009-11-30T17:16:00.000-08:00

Things are really getting busy around here. I've been writing and recording, booking shows, and plotting my course for the coming year. Highlights include a mini tour in late December with my Australian pal Krista Polvere, and a mini tour in January with my Oregonian pal John Shipe. I'll cover the Northwest thoroughly between the two.

I may have mentioned that I play lap steel for the Portland band The Dimes who just released their new record, 'The King Can Drink The Harbour Dry' to overwhelming critical praise. Very nice.

And, as the title of the blog suggests, I wrote a Christmas song. I'm a little self-conscious about it...please don't tease me. Today I was trying to decide how I should put it out into the world. Release it as a single? Put it on iTunes? Print up some CD-R's and wrap them with a bow to sell at shows? In the end I decided to embrace the spirit of the season and give it away. I took it a step further and created the Ebbage Patch Song Collection, a site where I'll post all sorts of free downloads. Expect to see live recordings, demos, b-sides...everything that would otherwise go unreleased. It's on a separate site...in the future I'll figure out how to link it with my website but for now, go to:

http://ehrenebbagesongs.blogspot.com/

The downloads are free...I did however add a link to donate in case the spirit of the season grabs you too.

Talk softly, carry a big schtick

2009-11-10T08:40:00.000-08:00

Portland, Oregon is chock full of bands. Get coffee anywhere on Mississippi Ave and you're likely to be served by someone in a band. It's actually pretty cool...music is alive and vibrant in the soggy Northwest town. Bands are taking chances and pushing boundaries. You're more likely to see a band made up of accordions, glockenspiels, violins and clarinets than you are a two-guitar, bass and drums band. Take Loch Lomond for example; they're emerging as one of Portland's sweetheart bands and they don't even have a proper drumset. They're great.

As with all music scenes, there is a tendency for bands to be born with all of the aesthetic of the trail blazers but none of the substance. It becomes a schtick. Think about all of the Beatles copycats. The psychedelic clones. The southern rock of the seventies. The countless punk bands. The new wave scene. The LA hair band scene. The Seattle grunge scene. Etc., etc. For every great groundbreaking band, for every cool music scene, there are a dozen more who jump on the bandwagon.

There are signs of this in Portland.

I have the honor of playing in The Dimes, a Portland band with a schtick. But it's not. The band's last record, 'The Silent Generation' is a concept album of sorts. Guitarist Pierre Kaiser found a cache of turn of the century newspapers stuffed under the floorboards of his house. Songwriter Johnny Clay decided to write songs based on the quirky stories in the papers. Sort of an indie pop history album. Through the process, Johnny found his voice. He is a genuine history buff, and he found a way to merge his music with his interest in US history.

Since making this connection, Johnny has become a prolific writer. The songs pour out of him and the inspiration is obvious to all of us in the band. It is entirely genuine. He loves it. It may seem like a schtick, and I guess it is; the band that only writes songs about obscure historical figures from the pages of history. The truth is, it's an honest artistic effort and it's very well executed. Johnny has a clear vision for his music and he is going to see it through.

The band is preparing to release a new album, 'The King Can Drink The Harbour Dry' this weekend with shows in Seattle, Portland, Eugene and Ashland, OR.

There have been some glowing reviews in the lead up to the release. There have been a couple reviews written by critics who are not impressed. Fair enough. For what it's worth, I am totally inspired by Johnny's commitment to his vision and I am honored to be involved in the project. The record is worth having in your collection, and the live show is worth braving the rainy weather to see. If you're in the Northwest come check out one of the shows, and if you're elsewhere spend a few bucks on a great record. Get all of the info at The Dimes website HERE

Last one standing

2009-10-21T12:11:00.000-07:00

Wha-wha-what??!!!! It's been a month since my last post? Wow. I am sincerely surprised. A lot of things have happened in the past month. I met and opened for a few of my musical heroes, set up a writing/studio space to work in, played in Chicago...it's been a busy month! I could write a blog for each day, but I'll refrain. Instead, I'll post the blog that I just submitted to Calliope Epic as a guest writer. It will be featured when they re-launch their website...it isn't happening for a couple of days so I'm posting it here first.

"It's early. I woke up thinking about last night's show and couldn't fall back to sleep. What do you do when the venue stiffs you? Raise hell with the bartender? Make snide comments from the stage while the audience watches uncomfortably? No, of course not. Not if you want to be a professional.

My friend and mentor John Shipe once told me that success in the music industry is about being the last one standing. I'm not talking about 'fame and riches' success; you have better odds winning the lottery than becoming the next John Mayer. I'm talking about the 'pay your rent' success. The 'I don't have a day job' success. After years of working towards this goal I have finally achieved it. I am a professional songwriter and musician. Recently, a friend asked me how I was able to transition from being a part time musician to making my living at it. There are a number of specific things that made a huge difference, but the 'last one standing' idea is the one I'd like to focus on. It is key.

I've been stiffed by clubs a time or two. It feels awful. I can't bring myself to throw a tantrum or demand that the bartender pay me out of his tips; I'm always conscious of the manner in which I do business and the impression that I leave. So, I say "thanks for having me" and I suck it up and leave quietly. Thankfully it doesn't happen often. My consolation is that I can see past it when it does. These are the experiences that make musicians quit and become bank tellers or schoolteachers, and I know it. These are the experiences that, over time, knock musicians down. Sometimes, as John put it, you just have to be the last one standing.

The ability to stay upright is a huge unspoken factor in having a successful career. Sure, you have to develop your skills, build your network, make the phone calls, send the emails, etc., etc., but you also have to be able to withstand the pressure and conditions of the career. Sometimes that means sleeping in an airport. Sometimes it means spending 3 days in a motel room in Laramie waiting for a freak blizzard to pass. Sometimes it means driving several hours to play for a half empty room for no money. Sometimes it means pawning a guitar to pay rent. It means driving a shitty car, going for months without getting your broken tooth fixed, wearing socks with holes. It means eating a lot of rice and quesadillas, moving back to the parents' house, breaking up with girlfriends who don't understand. It means not buying gifts for Christmas and spending Thanksgiving in New York handing out samples of Airborne at the Macy's parade to make a few bucks. It means waking up at 4 am to catch the green line train to Midway because you can't afford to call a cab. It means asking for another favor from a friend who has been doing you favors for ten years.

The list goes on and on, and as I write this I realize how it must look. Who would voluntarily go through this? Me, I guess, and countless other musicians and artists who are making it work. So when someone asks me how to be a professional musician I tell them to practice their craft, get their business together, and be the last one standing."

School

2009-09-21T13:28:00.000-07:00

Listen closely: if you are a fan of fantastic songwriting and intimate live shows, go see Slaid Cleaves.

I opened for him at the Tractor in Seattle last night. I felt good; played well, didn't forget any words, didn't tell too many long and boring stories...I finished the set feeling good about my offering, and the audience reinforced the feeling buy applauding loudly and buying a ton of cd's. Hot dog!

Then Slaid got up and it became clear that I was watching a guy who has mastered the craft. Every song was great. Not a single line out of place, and he set the songs up with perfectly told stories and anecdotes. When a performer is truly great they have a way of becoming invisible; you are engaged in the show without being distracted by the performer. It's smooth, seamless, dreamlike, and they don't do anything to wake you out of the feeling. By the end of the show I felt like I had received an education in the art of performing.

This sort of thing is not well represented by clips on YouTube. You have to be in the room.

Speaking of Youtube, I posted a video of Ten Cent Souvenir from last night's show.

Band assembly, live show broadcast...

2009-09-16T13:54:00.000-07:00

It's been 6 weeks since the move to Seattle and things are progressing quite nicely. I'm in the process of putting a band together for the first time in a long while...very excited about it.

In an attempt to keep up with all of the online media stuff, I arranged to broadcast the September 20th Seattle show live at www.synclive.com. It's free to view...you just need to create a user account. You can do that and see the show details here:

http://app.synclive.com?show/32182

I hope you all tune in!

Earthquakes vid

2009-09-11T21:30:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I'm late to this game. Here's my first attempt at a video entry. I'll do more of these in the coming weeks...

2009-09-01T13:21:00.000-07:00

Years ago I went to see Ian Moore play at Sam Bond's in Eugene. I had opened for him once or twice and we exchanged a few emails, so we were somewhat acquainted. After the show he mentioned that he had to drive through the night because he didn't have a place to stay. I offered my floor and he accepted.

At the time I was suffering through a tough breakup. She moved out and took everything with her. All I had was a bed, a desk, a couple of chairs and an old rotary dial TV. The place was barren, like the home of a person who has sold everything of value to support a habit of some sort.

The only bit of decoration was a life size poster of Michael Jordan that I kept from my childhood days. I stuck it to the living room wall after the girlfriend left because it was comforting for some reason.

So Ian walks into my nearly empty place with a huge poster of Jordan staring down from the wall. I offered him some food...I had one sweet potato in the cupboard...he politely declined.

We started talking about Jordan's decision to come out of retirement to play pro ball again when every sports opinionator said he was washed up. Those guys were mistaken. Jordan averaged 22.9 points per game and proved them all wrong. Ian's take on it was that it was ridiculous for the naysayers to tell Michael not to play. He was the best player in the history of the game; even if he'd lost a little with age he'd still be a top player in the league. Who were these guys to say he shouldn't play?

This memory comes to me now as I watch highlights from Bret Favre's recent win...he came out of retirement at the age of 39 and he looks pretty sharp. Of course a lot of folks criticized his decision to play again, and they appear to be wrong.

This makes me think about the psychology of the various types of performers. Athletes, musicians...I think about the mental fortitude required to perform at such a high level. The public is so quick to find reasons to discourage. Even when you're the best in the world, it just takes a slight push to get the momentum of public opinion going against you. Every day that a performer goes to work he or she is required to prove his or her right to be there.

I can't exactly say that I am in Michael Jordan's position; the general public has not heard of me, let alone criticized me for my decision to do this work. Still, I'd like to borrow a few things from his approach: work towards mastery of a craft, work harder than the next guy, and pay no attention to anyone who says I shouldn't.

For the record, my parents have both been very supportive of my career choice.

The Fixer

2009-08-25T16:33:00.000-07:00

Is anyone else getting excited about the new Pearl Jam record? I am. Years ago they won me over with their blend of old and new sounds, their well-crafted recordings and their outrageous energy. In an era when most frontmen were singing about cherry pie Eddie Vedder was a breath of fresh air. He seemed like a guy you could admire and hang out with at the same time. Interesting lyrics, heartfelt presentation...I really liked them. Over the years I followed them less and less. It seemed like the songcraft was drifting away from my taste and it was becoming less relevant to me.

Their new single, The Fixer, is fantastic. It has all of the elements I used to love with enough new stuff to keep me interested. I find myself in admiration of Eddie Vedder once again, and I absolutely love the way the band sounds. It's cool that the song was written by drummer Matt Cameron. It makes me think that Pearl Jam is a real band made up of guys who all like and respect each others contributions.

Cameron Crowe directed the video. It looks great and makes me wish I could see these guys in a small club. It's free on iTunes...check it out!

http://www.itunes.com/backspacer

Wage Slaves finale

2009-08-18T22:19:00.000-07:00

Another week went by so quickly. Honestly, this whole year has flown by in a blur. I'm looking forward to a bit of time to rest and write in my new digs in Seattle.

The Sunday show at Mississippi Pizza in Portland was great. Some friends came out to support and I felt really happy to play for them. The set flowed nicely, I didn't forget very many words and I kept the awkward banter to a minimum. I tried a new approach to merchandise sales, too; I left a stack of cd's by the tip jar and told the audience to help themselves to a cd for whatever they could afford. When I was done playing the cd's were gone and the tip jar was full. Nice.

On Monday I taught the first day of a week-long rock band camp for kids. I've done this for a few years in a row and every year I have fun. The kids are totally excited to play some tunes with a full band and I'm glad to have a week to spend teaching the subtleties of 'Smells Like Teen Spirit'.

Another fun thing: Wage Slaves wraps up its season with episode 6 this week! Created by Chris Bolton, Wage Slaves is a web-based series about the baristas at the fictional 'Rose City Coffee'. Many of the songs on my record were used as the soundtrack for the entire series, and I make a cameo in a few episodes including the one this week. I've written a more detailed description in recent blogs but the best way to find out about it is to see for yourself.

Wage Slaves Episode 6 from Chris A. Bolton on Vimeo.

The shrinking/expanding world of the internet

2009-08-12T07:43:00.000-07:00

A few months ago I bought a couple of microphones from a guy named Mike Jasper in Austin, Texas. He posted them for sale on a recording forum called Gearslutz. As a precaution, we spoke on the phone before the money and mics were exchanged. Turns out he's a baseball fan as well as a writer for TapeOp, a recording mag I love. We chatted for a bit about music and ballgames and he told me about a songwriter friend of his, a guy named Slaid Cleaves. I hadn't heard Slaid before so I checked him out online. Wow...he's good!

Mike and I stayed in touch via email and he asked me to take part in a panel for an upcoming article in TapeOp. I did, and sure enough I got to see my name in print in one of my favorite magazines. Cool.

Then, I moved to Seattle. I was booking shows as I usually do and I noticed that Slaid Cleaves is coming to town in September, playing at The Tractor Tavern. I happen to know the guy who books the Tractor...I asked him if I could open the show and he gave me the gig. September 20th...tell your friends.

I'm thinking back to the days before the internet. This would never have happened. The internet has drawn the corners of the world within easy reach, making these sorts of connections an almost daily experience.

Old news, I know, but sometimes it's fun to think about how we managed before technology came along.

Anyway, here's video of Slaid playing a tune called 'Cry'.

Seattle!

2009-08-04T12:29:00.000-07:00

I have always loved Seattle. Now I live here.

Anna and I moved two days ago after a whirlwind couple of months of big life changes. Marriage, trip to Italy, deaths in the family, career moves, etc., etc. We’ve been busy. Somehow in the midst of everything it became clear that we wanted to leave Eugene in search of new opportunities, so we did. She interviewed for a job, a week later they gave her the nod and within 48 hours we were in Seattle.

I’m excited. There is a community of artists here that rivals any in the country. I have seen it from the periphery and now I can jump in. I’ll take a cue from my buddy John Shipe; when he moved to SoCal last year he immediately hit the open mic circuit. It seemed like a step backwards for someone who has been playing professionally for years, but within a few weeks he connected with a ton of local music fans and made a few good friends.

Last night I played at an open mic for the first time in years. Molly Maguire’s is a cool little Irish pub in Ballard. It’s like Cheers where everybody knows each other. When my turn came up I played my tunes and felt warmly received. Looks like I may be invited to play a songwriter in the round show this week.

It’s hard to know what will come of this move. It happened fast and without much forethought, but it’s a step in the right direction. As my friend Joe once said, “How can I look when I’m already leaping?”

More DIY/Sara Lov

2009-07-28T12:08:00.000-07:00

I've been all pumped up to find creative ways to get my music out to the world. There are way more opportunities than any one person can manage...all of the internet media outlets draw gazillions of viewers and it would be wonderful to work my way into their line of sight. One of the big elements that I lack is video content, so I'll be working on putting that together.

Sara Lov had a great idea; she shot a series of videos performing covers as requested by her fans. They are extremely simple, low or no budget, and by encouraging fan input she engages them and provides a reason to follow her efforts. It's such a great idea...I may need to 'borrow' it...

Here's one installment. She's accompanied by Zac Rae, who produced my record. Sara is touring like crazy this fall...go see her!

Boltron/Wage Slaves

2009-07-21T07:58:00.000-07:00

Chris Bolton has been writing for a long time. I have known him for 17 or so years and he was writing before we ever met. I count him among a few friends whose work ethic, discipline, and drive are on a level above most others. It has been fun and inspiring to watch him develop his craft. I'll never forget the time a few years back when we found ourselves sharing a hotel room in the Philippines; each night when I left to carouse with the locals he stayed behind to write. Each (mid) morning I'd wake up to find him already awake, writing. He is on a mission.

In recent years there was a stretch when he seemed to be on the verge of bitterness and jadedness; he had become a great writer and was working like crazy to produce a solid body of work, but the world wasn't paying attention. He submitted screenplays to publishers and contests and got great feedback but never got the stamp of approval that so many of us seek from our respective industries. He had stacks of stories and screenplays and he knew that his work was good...why didn't anyone take notice?

I think that this is the point at which many artists choose to throw in the towel and become hobbyists. In Chris' case, it was the point at which he stopped waiting for the green light from an imaginary financier and started making it happen on his own.

In the past year, Chris launched an increasingly popular web-based comic, Smash, which is illustrated by his brother (and my best buddy) Kyle Bolton. They have maintained an incredible pace and have released 10 episodes since its debut one year ago.

Chris also wrote, directed and edited a fictional web-based series called 'Wage Slaves' based on the lives of the baristas at the Rose City Coffehouse. He shot the episodes over a number of weeks on a shoestring budget. Yours truly provided the soundtrack and I play the role of Rob in a few episodes. The series makes its debut today!

"Wage Slaves" Episode 1 from Chris A. Bolton on Vimeo.

On top of it all, Chris was one of sixteen selected to contribute a story to 'Portland Noir', a collection of short stories by Portland writers. It's a real book, by a real publisher! You can find it online HERE.

In the past year Chris has received more attention than ever and it has come as a result of the initiative he took to put his work out into the world. Bottom line is, nobody is going to come looking for you while you toil away in your bedroom. Find ways to make your work visible and it will get the attention it deserves and you will be happy. Just look at Chris!

Me and Eli

2009-07-09T07:34:00.000-07:00

Fun news this week: 'Land on You' will be featured on ABC's Eli Stone on Saturday, July 11!

Licensing has become a major source of revenue and exposure for independent artists. Many of today's well-known artists' careers were launched as a result of a choice placement in a film or TV show (think Grey's Anatomy, Garden State, etc.). This is the first major placement for me...it's exciting, and hopefully there will be more to come!

Hitched!

2009-07-07T09:27:00.000-07:00

Whew, what a month it has been. I’ll explain:

Months of wedding preparations came to a head and the result was as I had hoped. I married my sweetheart on June 13th. She and I left the country a few days later. We flew from Seattle and landed in Barcelona and after sleeping for several hours we ate tapas and danced all night.

The next day we caught a $16 Ryan Air flight to the Mediterranean island of Sardegna. I have never seen such clear blue water outside of a swimming pool. The island is gorgeous and somehow it has resisted turning itself into a tourist trap a la Disneyland or Club Med. There are real people who live there and couldn’t care less if your towels have been washed. I’ll spare most of the details of the trip and just highlight the highlights, in order of appearance:

1. The best croissant (locally referred to as a cornetto) I have ever had. It was in the town of Fertilia which was built by Mussolini all those years ago. I remember thinking as I ate that if the extreme right wingers are right about Obama being a fascist a la Mussolini, maybe we’ll get to eat croissants like these. Here's a view from our room.

2. Clear blue ocean water. Clear like a swimming pool.

3. Cappuccinos and macchiatos.

4. The tiny town of Bosa. They have a castle. They have parades. They have people who stand on the backs of horses galloping at full speed. They have Ichnusa.

5. Cala Gonone. Okay, this town was sort of touristy. But in a good way. On this part of the island a mountain range plunges directly into the sea. It looks like someone put the Alps in Hawaii. To get there, you must risk your life on the mountain roads that have cute guardrails and crazy drivers, but when you finally make it you are greeted by bars and cafes and gelaterias, and of course the clear blue Mediterranean.

6. Bonifacio, Corsica. We took a ferry there from Santa Teresa di Gallura. Another small town on another island. Here they speak French. The town was built on sheer white cliffs centuries ago. The buildings are built to the very edge of the cliffs and sometimes are incorporated into the rock itself. You would think that they might have built the town a few feet back from the edge for safety’s sake. We ate mussels and attempted to blend in by saying ‘bonjour’ and ‘merci’.

7. Mainland Italy. Cinque Terre. Five little towns nestled into the hills along the sea. They are connected by hiking trails and a train line. You can have dinner in one town and ride the train to another for dessert. They all have their charm, but I liked Vernazza the best.

In the mornings in Monterosso, outside a café called ‘Laura’s’, you will find a small crowd of people sitting around waiting. Eventually an old man appears with a tray of freshly baked pastry cream-filled pastries and the crowd erupts into cheers and laughter. Everyone reaches for the tray and the cheers give way to satisfied munching sounds. Anna decided that these are the best pastries anywhere. We stumbled upon this scene on our first morning in Monterosso. On our second morning we were there waiting for the old man with everyone else.

8. Florence. Il Duomo is incredible. Pictures cannot capture the simultaneous enormity and micro-detailed nature of the building. To think that this was built so long ago and with such old technology…it is simply amazing to see in person.

9. Real gelato. Seriously, not like anything else I’ve ever had.

10. Piazzale Michelangelo at night, overlooking Florence. Bring wine.

Cool

2009-05-12T07:49:00.000-07:00

Holy smokes. The midwest tour was great. True, I did get snowed in and couldn't leave Laramie, WY for a couple of days resulting in a canceled show, and I got a speeding ticket in a tiny little town in Iowa, but for the most part the tour was a success.

Since I've been back I've been sort of obsessed with learning more about engineering and producing records. I've spent a ton of time browsing the forums on sites like TapeOp and Gearslutz and I am continually amazed at the amount of information that is so readily available. It's awesome. In addition to all of the nerdy tech stuff on the forums there are occasionally posts of things like this:

Perhaps the coolest thing I have ever seen on the internet. Check out his Youtube page...I love #3 too.

Hello, Buffalo

2009-04-16T07:40:00.000-07:00

I can't believe it's been so many weeks since my last entry. Time is flying. For those of you whose lives and happiness depend on reading my updates, please accept my sincere apology.

So, I'm in Buffalo, Wyoming. You learn something new every day...like, there is such a place as Buffalo, Wyoming. I haven't actually seen anything here. I got to town late last night and went straight to the Motel 6. I woke up this morning and looked out the window to get a sense for what the place is like, but there's a Holiday Inn blocking all of the view. I guess I'll have to leave the lap of luxury to explore Buffalo further. One thing I know for sure is that it is windy. Seriously windy. From the time I arrived last night until now the wind has been blowing hard like when you're driving on the freeway with the window down.

Anyway, since my last entry I have been busy. The California tour ended well. Zac Rae sat in with me at the Hotel Cafe in Los Angeles (the show was recorded and I'm giving away a couple of mp3s at the link to your left). Anna, Louis and I made the 800 mile drive home in one long day.

The following day I resumed work on a record with Patrick Kavaney. His record is coming along well and the finish line is in sight. A week or so later I left for Seattle where I worked on a record with Reily. They booked some studio time at Orbit Audio in Pioneer Square and I had the pleasure of working on the very same console that Guns and Roses used to record Appetite for Destruction. At least that's what Joe the owner told me. He may have just wanted to see me giggle. Reily's record has been long in the making...we started the project a year and a half ago. It's fun to hear side by side comparisons of stuff I engineered at different times. I heard some progress in my skills, which felt nice. On a side note, Tat's Deli around the block from the studio makes a great cheese steak.

I left Seattle a couple of days ago...wow...seems like weeks. I drove 815 miles directly to Billings, Montana to play for the students at Montana State. Christine and the rest of the Student Activities Board were gracious hosts and bout me lunch, dinner, and a mango smoothie for the road. I left Billings at around 8 last night and drove a couple of hours down I-90, stopped at the Motel 6 here in Buffalo, and that brings us up to date. Now, I'll find some bfast, a large coffee, and continue on to Laramie where I will play for some more college students.

Oh...check out Slaid Cleaves.

Tour blog 4 / eating

2009-03-22T07:40:00.001-07:00

We've been kicking around the Bay Area for a few days, seeing friends and family, hiking in the Berkeley hills and eating some terrific things. Highlights:

-Pizza at the Cheeseboard with feta, mozzarella, tomatoes, basil, and lemon zest

-Dinner at Ajanta on Solano, especially the naan stuffed with cheese and mint

-Coffee at Cole Coffee on College Ave

-Inspiration Point in Tilden Park

-The Starving Musician on Shattuck...wish I could afford that Ampeg

-More coffee at Cole Coffee

-Bfast at Rick and Anne's...going back today

The show on Friday was fantastic. The Uptown is a great Oakland venue...the sound is good, the staff know what they're doing, and the beers don't cost a fortune. I played on a bill with some of my childhood friends...we grew up playing baseball in Oakland and dreaming of playing in the big leagues. Now we're all musicians. Their band is called The Real Tom Thunder, and their live show was pretty rocking. It was a bit like Zep with Sublime with Tower of Power, except not like any of them. Fun music, good songs, played with all of the enthusiasm of guys trying to stretch an up-the-line grounder into a double and diving head-first into second base.

I played a short set, just the hits...it felt pretty strong and the audience was full of friends and family so they were cheering at all of the right moments. It was a bit overwhelming to have so many of them show up...I saw everyone but didn't have a chance to really talk to any of them.

At the end of the night Anna left with her cousin and I stayed to pack up and hang out with my old buddies. Of course, I put my car keys in Anna's purse and forgot to get them out before she left, so I had to leave my car full of gear in downtown Oakland overnight. Dumb. RTT drummer Leon gave me a ride home and we finally had a chance to catch up. We sat in the car and talked for an hour about gear, signal chains, mix techniques, etc. Leon was probably the first friend I ever had who shared my interest in music and performing...as fifth graders we used to arrange performances for our class...it was great to reconnect with him and find that we still have a lot in common.

The last couple of days have been spent with family...Anna and I both have a ton in the area and we've been running from place to place to get a little time in with all of them. We still have more to go. Today's schedule:

Bfast in Berkeley with friend and former manager Elliot

A visit to the Italian consulate in San Francisco

Early dinner with Anna's grandparents

Late dinner with my uncle in Castro Valley

Somehow in the middle of this I need to wrap up booking the last couple of shows for the midwest tour in April.

Tour blog 3 / Aussie press!

2009-03-20T07:14:00.000-07:00

Yesterday felt like vacation. Woke up, lazed around a bit, went for a run, layed in the grass, wrote a blog, looked for gear on craigslist, went downtown for some excellent tacos...I didn't have to be at the University of the Pacific until 7pm, and it was a mere 25 miles away (we drove almost 1ooo miles over the two days prior). For the past two months I have been frantically booking two tours, making records with folks, planning a wedding, etc., etc. I haven't had any real opportunity to decompress. It's funny to think that this tour might actually provide me with a chance to relax.

The show was fine...college shows can be so hit or miss. The student production staff was great, the campus was beautiful, but the show itself was a little bit underwhelming. The students were kinda half listening and more interested in the March Madness ballgame on tv, I guess. Just one of those gigs where it takes a little extra effort to get into the tunes and play with enthusiasm. They invited me back and I'll happily do it, but I might need to bring a box of fireworks or a clown or something.

It's probably for the best. I got some fun news yesterday and if the gig had been any better my head may have swelled up. My friend Jenny Queen released her record this month. She's based in Sydney, Australia and is signed to ABC Records. I co-wrote the majority of the tunes with her and I've been eagerly awaiting the release. Well, it's out and she's getting some press. Jenny tells me that The Australian is 'one of the two big newspapers, like a smart USA Today'...they reviewed the record and interviewed her, and she talked a bit about our writing process. You can go to any newstand in Australia and get a paper, or you can read the article online HERE.

Congrats, Jenny, and thanks for the shout out!

Tonight I play in Oakland at a cool club called the Uptown with some of my oldest friends.

Tour Blog #2 / Industry

2009-03-19T08:07:00.000-07:00

Oh man...we jumped right into full tour mode on the first day of shows.

Up at 6:45 am, showered, ate oatmeal and strawberries thanks to Anna, wrote a quick blog entry, and out the door a little after 8. We had to make it to Fresno by 11 to load in for the nooner at Cal State Fresno. Guitar? Check. CD's? Check. Good...we're off. It was a beautiful morning in the central valley. We enjoyed the drive for about 25 miles when I realized that we were headed in the wrong direction. North instead of south. The extra miles, plus a little traffic changed the drive from being a leisurely jaunt through California farmland to a bat-outta-hell mad dash down Highway 99. I made it just in time to hop out of the car, hustle over to the stage, plug in (thanks for the battery, D!) and start no less than three minutes after the scheduled show time. Yep, now this is a tour the way I remember it.

We had a few hours to make our way back up to Modesto...we took some backroads, stopped for burgers and a Blizzard, and got to the Fat Cat Music Hall right on time.

The club was huge...and empty. The audience was really just made up of the other bands and a few folks who came to see them. But the sound was amazing. It was a true pleasure to sing and play in that place, and by the second verse of the opening tune I was really into it.

After the show I talked to one of the other bands for quite a while. The Mainland is a rock band from Yuba City who really have a lot going for them. Their show is put together very well, and they play like guys who have twice their experience.

I got into a conversation with the singer about his goals for the project and he kept mentioning their plan to shop around for a record deal. I couldn't help but offer my opinion in the form of advice...Don't Do It!!!! See, his band already has everything a label might offer at this point. They have gear, a van, a record, a developed sound...for them to sign a record deal at this stage of their career would likely result in the halting of all momentum, and possibly the breakup of the band. This is the typical outcome...totally standard and to be expected.

The conversation called up lots of memories from my own experience with a major label. Honestly, I wouldn't trade it for anything. I am glad to have gone through it, and I don't feel like we were treated any worse than any other young band with a contract. Our A & R guys were great and would have helped us if they could, but the band broke up in the end and we never got to see our record on the shelves or hear it on the radio. As an individual, my life was enriched and enhanced by the experience. For the band, though, it was a disaster.

The lesson? Do it yourself. Make your own records. Book your own tours. Make your own goals and decisions. Build a fanbase. Develop a career. If you deserve attention from the big industry, it will come to you. Don't spend all of your time and energy pursuing their attention...get the attention of fans first. They'll be the ones buying the records and coming to the shows.

Speaking of shows, I'm playing a free one at University of the Pacific in Stockton tonight!

Tour blog/Interview!

2009-03-18T07:52:00.000-07:00

We arrived in central California last night after a long drive from Oregon. It was just a driving day...no show, so the highlights were:

Excellent lunch at Allison's in Ashland.
Got sleepy in Yreka...Anna took over at the wheel.
Looked for a Dairy Queen in Redding...didn't find it.
Listened to Ryan Adams, Calexico, Iron+Wine...totally suited the rural interstate drive.
Arrived at Aunt Kay's, where Camarie had some spaghetti waiting.
Slept

Today I play two shows...Fresno State and the Fat Cat Music Hall in Modesto!

Oh...also:

Andrew at Northwest Indie Music took a moment to call and ask about what I'm up to. He posted the interview as a follow-up to his review of Ten Cent Souvenir. The interview is posted HERE

A nice review

2009-03-11T08:27:00.000-07:00

I met Andrew Fickes a number of years ago when I was a member of John Shipe's band. Andrew booked shows at Central Washington University in Ellensburg...John and I played there and made friends with Andrew. Years later, he's writing for various local and regional publications and has a blog dedicated to independent musicians and industry stuff. He wrote a review of 'Ten Cent Souvenir' and we did a follow-up phone interview. The review is posted here:

Northwest Indie Music review

The interview will be posted sometime soon.

Thanks Andrew!

Pet Marmoset presents Writer's Block

2009-03-06T22:35:00.000-08:00

I was going to write a little note about the benefit show tomorrow. I decided that Ryan Wines' post, on www.petmarmoset.net/blog says it perfectly. Here is the post in its entirety:

This Saturday night at Holocene in downtown Portland, Team Marmoset will be “using our power for good”, as we present, “Writer’s Block” - a benefit show, with all proceeds going to the Oregon Food Bank.

Writer’s Block is a little idea we came up with to accomplish a couple of things in the community. First off, we are all quite aware of the unfortunate and challenging economic situation the world has quickly fallen victim to. This new Writer’s Block series will be a vehicle for raising awareness of our community’s needs and raising both funds and food for one of the better community service organizations in town.

The second objective for this event is to bring together a diverse number of singer-songwriters from the Portland community and feature the core of their talent - songwriting - in a simplified, stripped-down presentation. As you can see, many of the artists participating in this first edition of the Writer’s Block series are songwriters and leads for successful Northwest-based bands. Others are some lesser-known, but equally talented artists, which we’ve chosen to highlight and introduce to an appreciative audience. Ideally, Writer’s Block might weave a new thread in the Portland music community, bringing artists and people together in community, while removing some of the barriers, clubs, and cliques that naturally prevail in an music scene such as Portland.

Writer’s Block is this Saturday night at Holocene in Portland and only costs $5, along with at least two cans of food. All proceeds and food will be donated directly to the Oregon Food Bank. The show will feature an intimate candle light setting, with non-stop music rotating between two stages throughout the evening. All of the performances will be stripped-down, acoustic solo, duo and trio performances and, hopefully, will all combine for a very special evening. Additionally, it will be a great time to meet new people and build some relationships in the PDX music community. There will also be a Motown-themed dance party to follow, with our dear friend, Karizma, working the turn tables. The doors open at 8pm - get there early! More info at www.holocene.org

Download Ten Cent Souvenir in its entirety for free!

2009-02-27T21:48:00.000-08:00

Wow...I just discovered that, as part of my digital distribution agreement with CD Baby, Ten Cent Souvenir has been made available on Amie Street. If you've never seen the site, you should take a look. They price music according to its popularity...new music starts out being free and as more people download it the price goes up. Well, I haven't done a lick of work to promote my page on Aime Street, so all but one song are available for free. I thought I'd spread the word to the folks in my little corner of the web first. So, for a limited time, you can download 'Ten Cent Souvenir' in high-quality mp3 format for free. Here's the link. Pass it around!

Ten Cent Souvenir on Amie Street

Shaking the Tree

2009-02-23T18:18:00.000-08:00

I had the chance to catch up with a friend the other day. We had a great conversation. I wound up clarifying an idea that I have been bumping up against a lot lately…I thought I should write about it.

The way I see it, any time you make an effort towards something, you will see returns. Maybe they will be the results you hoped for and intended to see and maybe not. But you will see something…a reaction to your action. The analogy that comes to mind is this: It’s like shaking fruit from a tree. Maybe you have your eye on one apple. You shake the tree. Leaves fall around you, other apples drop from the branches, and if the one you want is ripe and ready it does too. But if it’s a peach you’re after, and you’re shaking an apple tree, a peach is not going to fall no matter how hard you shake.

I think back on the years post high school. I was pretty sure that I wanted to find a career in music but I heard a lot of advice about the importance of having a backup plan. Perhaps a feeling of obligation drove me towards school. I went to community college for a couple of years, then to a university. I liked it enough but I sure didn’t apply myself the way other students did. I didn’t feel like I was in my element. I didn’t know what my element was…the time I was spending at school could have been devoted to finding it, but I talked myself into being practical. It took quite a while, but I finished with a degree.

I don’t mean to say that I regret going to school, or that school in general is a waste of time. I learned a ton of important stuff, and all in all I appreciate the experience. I regret making the decision to trudge through something that I wasn’t in love with. I regret not being more proactive in seeking out my element. I regret shaking an apple tree expecting something else to fall.

Maybe regret is too strong a word. I can’t expect myself to have 20/20 foresight vision, right? In reality, it was part of the process that has led me here and for that I am extremely grateful. I wouldn’t choose anything else.

The thing is, when you shake a tree, something will fall. It feels like progress. You see results. You find yourself with fruit all around you. It encourages you to keep shaking. You have something to show for the effort you made. Who knows if you could expect the same under another tree? Maybe there’s nothing up there but dry leaves? Maybe, but if you don’t take the time to find out you will be destined to eat nothing but applesauce, apple pies, apple juice…

If you want to be a musician, don’t go to business school. If you want to be a hairdresser, stop selling real estate. The more you work towards the wrong goal, the more entrenched you will be in that world and the harder it will be to find your way out. Besides, you will be working half-heartedly towards something that others are reaching for with all of their might, and you will seem much less special than they.

Of course, not everyone knows which tree to shake. In that case, the goal should be to vigorously shake every one in reach until the right one is found. Don’t just plant yourself under the wrong one and give it a little push once in a while.

Heh…I really should be writing a song or practicing guitar right now.

* Photo by Melissa Rae

Criticism

2009-02-12T07:35:00.000-08:00

For years I have wondered why critics choose to write so many negative reviews. There is plenty of fodder, maybe now more than ever, but there is an amazing amount of good stuff being produced. Why don't critics use their forum to spread the word about things they like? Bad music certainly doesn't need a critic to slow its momentum. That will take care of itself. But good music can always benefit from a little critical praise.

So this week I saw two shows. One was terrible, one was fantastic. I found myself thinking and talking about the bad one a lot more than the good one. Why? Who knows? Was it because I felt ripped off? Well, I did. Had the tickets been free I still would have felt ripped off. The 'world famous' band looked like they had just rolled out of the tour bus bunks, a couple of them were obviously quite hammered, and totally called it in. One guy stumbled around the stage for the entire show and sounded terrible when he was actually playing. The rest of them performed with as much enthusiasm as a 12-year-old taking out the trash.

It might have been fun if the show was in a venue that was more suited to the music. A smoky bar with a stage in the corner and beers for a dollar would have been a better fit. Unfortunately, it was all wrong. The vibe of the room was stuffy. The sound was AWFUL. I'm not just being picky...it was undeniably bad. You'd think a venue that consistently charges $30 for tickets would install a proper sound system. Both acts were clearly struggling to hear themselves in the monitors, and the audience was struggling to hear anything the singers were saying. AWFUL.

The following night I went to see another show at the same venue. It was amazing. World class musicians, world class music. Every song had something great happening. I'd rank this show up there as one of the best I've seen. I felt the contradictory urges to go write music all night and to burn my guitar in acknowledgment of the fact that I'll never reach that level. I love that feeling.

Still, I wonder why I feel more compelled to tell people about the bad show than the good one? Am I trying to warn the masses? Do I need sympathy for the loss of time and money? Am I simply offended by the disregard for the audience showed by both band and venue? Whatever it is, it makes me want to talk about the experience.

In the restaurant world they have a saying: "If a customer has a good experience, they'll tell a few friends. If they have a bad one, they'll tell ten."

Maybe I gained a tiny bit of insight into the mind of a critic. It's a little more understandable, I guess. They have to listen to stacks and stacks of mediocre CD's. They probably feel robbed of their time and their only recourse is to make their experience known to the rest of us. Fair enough...but I still think they should cheer up.

Fine tuning a process

2009-02-10T18:50:00.000-08:00

Part of what I enjoy about my current lifestyle is the variety; yesterday I worked with my friend James West on a short film score project. Today I made tamales. Tomorrow I'll remix a couple of tunes for a project I produced for a friend. Every single day is different and I look forward to them as they come.

On the other hand, I really like routines. Lately I've been accompanying Anna to the U of O where she's auditing an Italian class. I go to school with her each morning and spend an hour reading and writing in the library . I bring my travel mug full of coffee, my notebook, turn my cell phone off, and allow myself to wander through the stacks and read a chapter of any book I want. It's time that I have scheduled to follow my nose a bit and I end up discovering something cool and new every day. It's an attempt to keep 'the well' full.

There's a part of all of this that I'm trying to adjust. True, I really do look forward to each day. True, I have a life of varied and interesting experience. But I have found that it is hard to finish projects in a timely manner. I might only have one day a week to devote to any number of things that I have started. The recording project with James has been crawling along for months!

I'm starting to wonder if I shouldn't divide the year into quarters and devote each quarter to one or two things. Write songs. Record songs. Release record. Tour. I'd feel like I was letting a lot slip through the cracks if I did it this way, but the net result might actually prove me wrong.

Anyone out there have a work routine that is working well?

Free download!

2009-02-07T12:08:00.000-08:00

It's amazing. I am becoming a fan of Google. I spent an hour or so putting together a page where folks can sign up for the mailing list and get a free mp3 for their trouble. I got the idea from this guy: Cameron Mizell

There was a time in the not-so-distant past when I shopped around to find a web guru who could help do this for a reasonable fee...now, I can do it myself and it is totally functional. I wonder what other promotional tools are available for DIY artists...

So, I'm giving a tune away to help promote the record. I'm hoping that friends and fans will pass this link around, post the tune on their blogs, etc. We'll see if it works! Get yours here:

Free MP3

In Bruce's defense...

2009-02-01T13:04:00.000-08:00

I've been keeping an eye on the Lefsetz Letter, a blog about current music, media and marketing. The guy seems a bit surly but he offers good insight into the music industry. In the past week he wrote two entries about The Boss. Both were fairly harsh criticisms that I found to be off-base. I felt compelled to write a reply to him, but he doesn't seem to post many comments on his page so I thought I'd post my letter here. His original post can be found here.

What do you guys think? My letter is as follows:

Wow...another Bruce blog?

I've appreciated the opinions and analysis on your blog ever since a friend turned me on. Good stuff. When I clicked on your previous Bruce headline I was a little surprised by your scathing review of his latest record; I think it's a solid effort. I chalked it up to a difference in opinion. Now, another anti Bruce blog...he must really get under your skin! I would think that a writer might rather use the time and forum to spread the word about something he/she likes, rather than write two articles in a week dismissing the same artist. He's in the news, though, and your blog deals with current music, media, marketing...fair enough.

I guess I just don't agree with this one. Listen, the guy has been in the public eye for 30-plus years. He has run a multi-million dollar operation for 30-plus years. I'm trying to think of another person in his position who hasn't made a few bad calls over the course of their career. I love me some Paul McCartney, but that whole Jacko thing in the eighties? Ouch. Miles Davis put out some serious crap at the end. Go down the list of legends and you'll find some strange decisions and missteps in all of their careers.

So maybe Wal-Mart was a bad idea. Maybe 'Magic' was compressed all to hell. Maybe there is more strategy behind his public persona than some of us might want to believe. I don't think any of this is part of what he thinks of as his art. These are all just decisions that were made, probably by a group of 10 or so people, with the same goal that every artist/manager/label has: get the music to the people. This part of the process comes after the art is made, and in today's industry artists are forced to consider every possible outlet for their music.

Your description sounds more like Elvis in the final years. Washed up, desperately clinging to the fame and fortune of a bygone era. Bruce is nowhere near that world. Doing it in part for the money? Um...yes. Which professional artist isn't? But he continues to produce relevant work. He's not simply repackaging old stuff, crappy unfinished demos and half-assed covers. He is not simply squeezing the last remaining drops from a career based on work he did as a youngster. He continues to work. He continues to push forward. Even if his latest record is an album of singles (an assessment I disagree with; the opening track clocks in at over 7 minutes), who the hell else can write an album full of singles?

(An aside: I dare say that Ann Powers is totally wrong about our era...it is all about the single! Maybe the sales are dramatically lower than ten years ago, but consumers are making it very clear that they would rather pay $.99 to download their favorite song than $18 for the song plus 12 other crappy filler tunes. Fans love the single. The current industry is entirely single-oriented)

As for Bruce's artistic motivations, I know a few folks who have worked on his albums at various stages in his career and they all say the same thing: he works harder than anyone. He devotes more to his craft than anyone. He cares more about what he does than anyone. The fact that he continues to write, record, and tour is amazing. If his sole motivation was money he would simply tell his team to work the back catalog, book an occasional stint in Vegas, and spend the rest of his years kicking sand along the Jersey Shore. Instead he tours the world (think that's easy?) and makes records of new material during breaks. You put him in the category of aging, out of touch nostalgia acts...who else among his peers is still working so fiercely after 30 years?

After reading and re-reading your articles I'm not sure what you are suggesting he do. If he were to have packed it up and given in to the changing times, wouldn't that indicate that he was in it for the short term success? Lost the edge and got too comfy? If he were to attempt a different strategy, say, working with the latest hipster producer and making a Youtube video with treadmills, wouldn't he seem like a desperate old fella trying to reach an audience of children? If you were his manager or attorney, what would you suggest?
It seems like you are simultaneously criticizing him for being too calculating and not calculating enough.

I look forward to your next blog...thanks for putting your ideas out there.

Ehren Ebbage

Making records.

2008-12-29T08:07:00.000-08:00

The creative process can be daunting. One of the most difficult parts is in the decisions, or indecision. I experience this on a regular basis as a songwriter; the instinct to self-edit can be so strong that it blocks creativity completely. You can spend hours circling around an idea, but until you make the decision to commit to it and run with it, the idea remains as it is...just an idea.

This year I have worked on a few projects in the role of engineer/producer. In this role, I've seen the creative process from a different angle. It's been great. One of the most satisfying experiences was with Fred Van Vactor.

Fred has a ton of great songs but until recently he didn't have a record. He tried but could never manage to see a project to completion. This summer, he and I spent a couple of days working on demos of his new tunes. It was extremely fun and he felt a huge surge of inspiration. I did what I could to record the demos well, but it seemed like part of my job was to help him get the ball rolling in a bigger way. He was on the verge of making the decision to start a real album project, he just needed a bit of a push. After making the demos he went to San Diego and knocked out a record with Christopher Hoffee...I've only heard a few of the tunes, but it sounds fantastic and suits him perfectly. And, I think one of our demos made it on the record! Listen to 'A Girl Like You' on his Myspace page.

Another highlight was helping John Shipe finish 'Yellow House'. He had put a ton of hours into the record but it hadn't taken shape. I think he just needed an objective opinion...someone to say "Keep this, axe that..." etc.

This week I'm working with another friend, Mike Last. We're in the thick of it...he's getting more and more comfy with the idea of committing to a final version of his tunes. I really like being the guy who's just around to push buttons and say "that was good but I think you can beat it". I'll post a link to his tunes when they're done!

Snow day

2008-12-15T09:56:00.000-08:00

Well, we got four inches of snow here on the valley floor. Not significant compared to many parts of the country, but it's enough to close the schools. Anna and I are gonna trek up to the golf course and go sledding.

I got word from Jenny Queen that she made a video for a song we wrote together last year. She's living in Australia now and her record is being released by a big label there. Pretty cool, I think. I've been tossing around the idea of going there for a work vacation sometime in 09...maybe I'll get to do a little Aussie tour with Jenny. Here's the video:

I'm scheduled to engineer something for the Eugene band Molasses tonight...I was worried that they may take a snow day too and cancel the session, but it looks like we're going to stick to the plan. They're a rootsy, bluegrassy trio and they're very much into the idea of recording the whole thing live. I'm just going to bring a tube mic and have them circle around the way they must have done in the old days. Fun!

Better hit the slopes before the snow melts...

Decisions, decisions

2008-12-12T23:16:00.000-08:00

Friday night, and I’m in my cozy little home. Anna and I have been talking for hours about how we should shape the next 6 to 12 months of our life. One of the frontrunner ideas is to pack our dog up and drive around the country for a month or two. As in, go on tour…

It’s been a year and a half since I’ve gone on a proper tour. I’ve left for a week or two, sure, but I haven’t ‘hit the road’ in the same way I used to. It’s really a whole different ballgame. It requires a couple solid months of planning, and the tour itself requires a couple solid months of sheer willpower.

So that’s one option. There are others, each with its own set of challenges and rewards. It got me thinking about the challenge of developing a career in music. The fact is, there are no clearly marked paths. None. Each step forward is preceded and accompanied by a bunch of second-guessing questions. It’s nearly impossible to predict the outcome of an effort.

Who knows. It’s exciting to think about the unlimited possibilities the world has to offer. It’s hard to make a choice.

Patience, patience.

2008-12-06T09:19:00.000-08:00

Every once in a while, something comes along that is so well-suited to my personality it feels like it was meant for me. I just have to be patient and wait for them to find me. Examples:

Designer jeans with faux stains. Are you kidding? I've been wearing stained, torn jeans since freshman year of high school. I never dreamed that it would actually become so fashionable that one would have difficulty finding an un-faux-stained pair in the stores. And now that tapered jeans are back I can probably cash in all my old pairs at Buffalo Exchange.

Netflix. No late fees? Really? And I just put the movies back in the mail from whence they came? Without paying late fees? I probably paid hundreds of dollars in late fees over the course of a few years. Netflix was made for me.

Twitter. Social networking made easy. Sure, I'll feel the pressure of being witty in 140 characters or less, but I have a feeling Twitter is going to be right up my alley. See, I do want to let people know what I'm up to. I'd like to keep in touch with friends. But blogging requires more discipline than I can consistently muster. With Twitter, I can get the word out, keep in touch, and spend very little time doing it. Signup is easy as pie...to sign up and 'follow' me go to:

www.twitter.com
www.twitter.com/ehrenebbage

Sandwiches

2008-12-05T14:03:00.000-08:00

Man…this week has been good.

The Tractor Tavern show in Seattle was great. Reily and The Soft hills both played excellent sets and it was fun to see some old friends. Drew Dresman, former Justin King bandmate, is really great in the Soft Hills. I’ll see Reily again next week when they come to Eugene. I’m helping produce their record at Justin King’s studio Blackberry Hill…great songs, great band!

Anna came along on this trip so we had to go to our favorite Seattle sandwich spot, Salumi. They specialize in cured meats, and the stuff is amazing. Seriously. Best bud Kyle went with us and he had to concede to his meatball sandwich.

The next day Anna and I went back for more. We ate our sandwiches in the sun on a little dock by the ferry terminal.

Bellingham was fun. While on stage I realized that I’d never seen Bellingham in the daylight. That’s one of the funny things about touring; you can go to a city several times without ever finding out what it looks like. As far as I can tell Bellingham has some hills, trees, and water.

The Forest Grove show was tiny but fun. Chicago friend Paula was in the area for family biz so she stopped by with her brother and sis-in-law. It was great to catch up.

Tonight I play at Musichead in Meford. It’s a cool indie music store that puts on shows from time to time.

Tomorrow, I’ll play with John Shipe at his ‘Goodbye Eugene’ show at Sam Bond’s Garage. John has been a friend and mentor for over a decade…he’s taking the opportunity to relocate for a while. He’ll be missed.

Husbandry?

2008-11-30T10:27:00.000-08:00

Oh man. I don’t know if I’ll ever get the hang of this blogging thing. My blog expert friend Leona says that an effective blog is one that is updated regularly. It just doesn’t come naturally to me.

Anyway, things are grand around here. The big news is that I proposed to Anna and she said yes. I couldn’t be happier about it, and she seems pleased. We’re thinking about tying the knot sometime soon…maybe in a few months or so. I look forward to being a husband.

I’ve had a couple of weeks of rest and I’m really starting to get antsy. I’ve been going back and forth between the desire to plant some roots and the urge to get outta town. Living in Eugene is funny…the community here is great, but it’s still a small place and it’s hard to develop a meaningful music career here. People have done it, but not often. I’ve been able to eke out a living since I’ve been back, but I wonder if it will ever turn into a real income. I’m considering renting a space to put together a little project studio...not sure if I can afford it yet.

I’ve taken a couple of live sound gigs at Sam Bond’s Garage. It’s actually really fun. Quite a challenge…my respect for live sound engineers has risen (from an already high place). Last night I ran sound for the Mood Area 52 show. Great band.

I have a bunch of shows this week…I’ll be in Portland, Seattle, Bellingham, Medford, and Eugene. Five in a row, just like the old days. I’m excited to play the Tractor in Seattle. Great room. Musichead in Medford is an excellent indie record shop that puts on all-ages shows. I haven’t played there before but I have a feeling it will be fun.

Results...

2008-11-04T18:58:00.000-08:00

San Francisco. Haven’t been here in a while…it’s nice to be back. I spent the first twelve years of my life across the bay in Oakland…feels kinda like home. I just landed at SFO. I’ll head over to old Justin King bandmate Nadir’s place, drop off my stuff and go somewhere to watch the election unfold.

I’ve been thinking about the significance of today’s election. It will be a day that we describe to our future grandchildren, I’m sure. This morning I walked with Anna and Louis to the ballot drop box by our house and paid attention to the details…It felt very purposeful.

So, I’m at Nadir’s place now with a little time to reflect. It looks like folks are voting in record numbers this year…I hope us citizens’ interest in current affair remains strong after the election. I think mine will.

Tomorrow I play at San Jose State University…It’ll be fun to talk to the students about the goings-on.

Fun Shows

2008-10-30T19:54:00.000-07:00

This weekend is what it's all about...I get to play two great venues with two great bands. First, I'll celebrate Halloween with The Floydian Slips at the Roseland. The Slips have been paying tribute to Pink Floyd for more than a decade...I've been with them for 7 years or so. See the previous post for a video preview.

Then, I celebrate the release of a new EP with the Dimes at the Doug Fir. I love playing with these guys and I'm excited to be on a bill with Derby...excellent band and great guys to boot.

Here's footage from a couple of Dimes shows:

The Dimes - Paul Revere from grammar school on Vimeo.

Portlanders, I hope to see you at one of these shows!

Holy Smokes

2008-10-29T13:08:00.000-07:00

Man...it's been busy around here! I've been playing a ton...New York City was a highlight. I've been working on a project for my buddy John Shipe, remixing one of his records. Soon I'll start work on the Dimes next record. Oh...this weekend I get to be part of an excellent Halloween show featuring the Floydian Slips! Here's a preview put together by one of the band members, Paul Lesinski.

There's actually lots of stuff to write about...I've had some revelations regarding my solo shows and promotion in general. I've just got to carve out some time to write!

Jay Nash

2008-09-24T12:17:00.000-07:00

Just a quick note to let you know about Jay Nash...he's an LA-based songwriter with a new record out. It's pretty darn good, and I helped write one of the tunes! The record is called 'The Things You Think You Need' and the tune is called 'Easy'. It's available on iTunes now!

Chicago, part 2

2008-09-12T08:10:00.000-07:00

9.7.08

Yesterday was great. Chris took my guitar to the shop for a quick set-up, and it was transformed into a whole new instrument. Poor guitar…It really sees a lot of abuse. Plane flights, cross-country drives through rapidly changing climates, not to mention the way I bang around on it when I get excited. Chris cleaned it up, replaced the nut and bridge with higher quality ones, and just generally brought it back to life. I’m excited.

I spent the rest of the day walking around some more. Such a cool city. I went back to Millennium Park to catch a bit of the opera concert. Man…I’d love to live in a place where they had this stuff going on.

I met up with Chris at the bar where Rachel works. We had burgers and sat and talked for a couple of hours until she finished her shift. Chris’ cousin Carrie came by to hang out with us and we got my guitar out and all of us played tunes on the patio until the wee hours. On the way home we stopped at a 24-hour Mexican place for tacos. Dee-lish.

I woke up pretty groggy today. Didn’t sleep enough. I’m excited to go home to Anna and Louis tomorrow.

I’m looking forward to the show at the Elbo Room tonight.

Chicago, in part...

2008-09-10T17:00:00.000-07:00

I finally got to spend more than a few hours in Chicago. I'd been there before, but never long enough to really explore the city. I kept track of my adventure, and the highlights will be posted with words and pictures.

Here's part one:

9.6.08

Chicago is cool. I’m staying with Chris and Rachel at their place in the Pilsen neighborhood west of downtown. Chris replaced me when I quit Justin King’s band last year…we hung out a bit then and have stayed in touch since. He and Rachel are extremely gracious hosts and have been really great to hang out with.

I covered a lot of ground on foot yesterday…I walked from Third Coast Guitars (Chris is a guitar repair tech there) through the meatpacking district to the downtown area. I went to the amphitheater in Millennium Park and watched a rehearsal for an Opera show. Man…the place is amazing. Gehry designed it. It’s huge, and the sound system is incredible. I’ve never heard anything like it.

The singers are apparently some of the bright stars in opera today…I’m completely ignorant and didn’t recognize their names. They sang beautifully, though, and the experience really opened my ears to the art form. It was similar to the experience of seeing Paul Brainard play pedal steel at Sam Bond’s in Eugene…I was blown away and developed a huge appetite and appreciation for it.

(Here's a pic of 'The Bean', also in Millennium Park)

I’ve really enjoyed having some time to wander around alone. I realized that I haven’t had much time to let my mind wander since last summer when I worked for my folks on their farm. I get so focused on work stuff that I forget to take time to read, write, think, explore…it’s such a crucial part of my creative process…no wonder I haven’t been writing many tunes lately.

Yachats

2008-09-02T12:58:00.001-07:00

The trip to Yachats was fun. We talked Anna’s mom Jane into coming along last-minute. I played six sets of music on Saturday night…I think I set a personal record. It was pretty standard; the locals came out for the show, awkward couples drank and danced to songs about heartache…Between sets I went outside with Anna to let Louis out of the car…he made friends with everyone. I had visions of myself, Anna and Louis driving around the countryside meeting new folks every night.

By the end of the night we were exhausted and retreated to the apartment above the bar. Owner Bruce is a warm, generous guy…he lets bands stay upstairs when they play at his place. We were thoroughly soaked in cigarette smoke but too tired to rinse off before bed. After trying for a few minutes it was clear that we wouldn’t be able to sleep unless they turned the jukebox off downstairs. It was on full-blast and the sound came up through the old floor loud enough that the words were perfectly audible. I got my jeans back on and went down to ask the bartender to turn it down a bit. Before I got through the door a big fella brushed past me and in an instant he was brawling with some guy at the bar. The bartenders were shrieking…I turned around and went back upstairs to wait it out. Anna and I watched from the window above as the big guy stormed out of the bar and wandered up the street into the dark. The jukebox was still blasting so I went back down. One bartender was nursing a guy’s wounds at a table…the other was behind the bar. She said something about her finger getting messed up in the fight and held it up for me to see. It didn’t look messed up at all…I made some vaguely sympathetic comment and then asked her if she could turn the jukebox down because it was 2:30 and we were trying to sleep upstairs.

We woke up mid-morning, loaded the car, and went for coffee up the street at a little hippie café. Coffee was good, pastries were so-so (a little too sweet and spongy). We ate and went to the cabin bass-player Jerry rented. He was making breakfast for everyone but we couldn’t stay…had to leave for home soon and we wanted Louis to have a chance to run around on the beach first. The fresh air was great…it kept trying to rain but never really did. It would sprinkle for a minute and then just clear up. We ran around in the sand with Louis…he would probably run all the way to Canada if we let him.

Back in Eugene now, we’ve seen two movies at the Bijou that were excellent… ‘Tell No One’ and ‘Frozen River’. I’m glad we have a theater in town with great movies and cheap popcorn.

This week I play in Portland and twice in Chicago…I get excited when I travel, but my home life is so entirely wonderful that can’t help but feel a little down when I think about leaving. I have a couple of days off in Chicago…maybe I’ll go visit my cousin in St. Louis.

Labor Day

2008-08-30T14:57:00.000-07:00

Off to the coast for a double-header. First, I’ll play a little dinnertime set at the Drift Inn in Yachats for the Labor Day vacation-eers. I’ve heard it’s not a bad gig. Hopefully I won’t have too many requests for Cat Stevens…actually, I could probably learn a couple of his tunes on the drive over…

Then, I’ll literally walk across the street to join my buddies Rich, Jerry, and John for a few sets of uninhibited rocking at the Landmark. It’s a special place where the sole purpose is to have fun. Anyone not doing so will be kicked out without a refund.

It’s nice. Neither of these are glamorous gigs, even if played wearing the rosiest-colored glasses. But Anna and Louis are coming along, as are the wives, partners, and kids of the rest of the band. We’ll eat, drink and sleep for free, and we’ll all come home with a little dough. It’s a coastal getaway for the Labor Day weekend, and it’s the kind of thing that makes life fun.

If I remember to take pics of the Landmark, I’ll post ‘em.

Summer

2008-08-15T22:49:00.001-07:00

It’s been nice around here. A little press, some fun shows…the summer has been good.

I feel more and more like I’m able to stay on top of the huge list of ‘to do’ items. My thoughts have moved from “how do I stay afloat” to “how do I grow my business”. I like the challenge…it’s like a real-life sudoku puzzle. I’m just happy to have a little breathing room to try and sort it out.

I’m trying to get my home recording setup together. I’ve done a bit of recording and mixing for friends and I’ve really loved it…I’m hoping to do more, so I have put some effort into making my space more functional. I now own a patchbay. I got a keyboard, too! It’s a project…I’ve learned to solder pretty well…hopefully I haven’t given myself lead poisoning from all of the fumes.

This weekend will be fun. I play with the Pink Floyd tribute band ‘The Floydian Slips’ at the Cuthbert amphitheater in Eugene. Last time we played there a couple thousand people showed up. Go figure. It’s a lot of fun to bang away at some good music, and the audience just eats it up.

Then, camping. Anna and I will take our pup Louis up to Fall Creek…we found an excellent swimming hole and I’m dying to jump in again!

More press!

2008-08-08T08:17:00.000-07:00

Man...I blushed when I read this. Full disclosure: Ryan Wines is the manager of The Dimes. Pet Marmoset is the name of his management company and blog. He and I have become friends over the past year, so it's entirely possible that this review is biased. Then again, he never hesitates to say exactly what he's thinking...

The review can be read here:

Pet Marmoset

Press!

2008-07-28T17:38:00.000-07:00

The folks at Northwest Noise are great. They're trying hard to bring attention to the lesser-known regional artists and they're just about as supportive as you can get. I've gotten to know them a little bit over the past few months and I'm very glad to have made their acquaintance.

I did an interview with them, which can be found here:

NWN Interview

Also, Leslie Waara wrote a review of Ten Cent Souvenir for the site, which can be found here:

NWN Review

Fun!

How to Promote a Show

2008-07-20T08:13:00.000-07:00

I'd love to know how...

I played in Salem twice this weekend.

First, The Dimes had an early evening slot at the Salem Art Fair. Nice gig...the event is definitely one of those family-oriented, munch-on-a-corn-cob-while-perusing-booths-displaying-local-artists'-work affairs, but the pleasant weather and calm-faced families were a nice break from the usual bar crowd. I'd nearly missed the show due to an huge accident on I-5, but I showed up with just enough time to park behind the stage and set up my stuff. The Dimes set was good...we played the usual favorites and had fun. The guys were nice enough to include one of my tunes in the set and I sold a few cd's to people who liked it.

Last night, I played the Blue Pepper. It's a large space, part cafe and part gallery. Derek, the guy who books shows, is very nice, always accommodating, and doesn't freak out about low attendance. It was low...

So, here's what I wonder: What adjustments do I need to make to my promotional strategy to increase the draw? I recognized almost every person from the last time I played there...all repeat customers. Many of them were singing along with the tunes. My tunes. They'd obviously listened to the record more than once! I think that folks generally respond well at my shows, and they seem to like the record. So, what's the missing link?...

This is the very same question that is asked by 99.99999% of all of the musicians in the world. It's tough to get people out of their houses and through the door of the club. Is there something I'm doing wrong? Something I'm overlooking?

Honestly, I think that it is a matter of persistence and long term effort. I know that I can make improvements to my show. I need to keep it fresh and develop an undeniably good set. I know that I can do a little more to promote, even with my limited budget. I need to do this stuff for each and every show...

Still, the weekend was great.
I had fun with The Dimes, fun at The Blue Pepper, fun yard-camping with Anna and Louis (our pup ) last night, and now I'm going to go have fun on my Yamaha XS650.

Week Recap/Weekend Preview

2008-07-18T09:52:00.000-07:00

Man...this has been a productive week!

- I finally found a way to effectively organize my mailing list and coordinate tour/music/bio information. See the Reverbnation post below.

- I have started filling out my September and October schedule. It's shaping up to be a great fall...I have trips to NYC and Chicago in the works!

- I renewed my domain name registration and directed it to this blog.

- I got Ten Cent Souvenir on iTunes.

There was more...these are just a few highlights.

This weekend should be fun. Today I'll be helping Fred record some more tunes. Later today I head to Salem to play an evening show with The Dimes. I'll try to get home in time to see the new Batman movie with Anna. Tomorrow, I head back up to Salem to play a solo show at the Blue Pepper. My last show there was fun and I'm looking forward to being back. I'll spend Sunday in the sun somewhere.

Good stuff!

Reverb Nation

2008-07-16T14:49:00.000-07:00

Hey folks,

So, I came across a website this week...it's called Reverbnation, and it is already making my job easier. You may have noticed some new little widgets on the sidebar of this blog... The music player, tour dates and mailing list sign-up are all powered by Reverbnation. Now, instead of taking an hour to update each of my various sites (Myspace, Facebook, etc.), I can do it all from one site and it works extremely well! It automatically sorts my mailing list by region, age, etc...I can send mailers to specific fans without bugging everyone else, and the mailers look great!

I feel like a new man!

Fred

2008-07-10T07:18:00.000-07:00

Hey Folks,

Last week I started a project with a friend from Eugene. Fred Van Vactor has been playing around these parts for years, but somehow he has managed to avoid releasing a CD. Thing is, audiences love his songs and he'd probably do quite well if he had a disc to sell. We were talking about this a few weeks ago and I offered to lend a hand. He took me up on it!

We recorded nine tunes in two days in the middle of last week. Mostly just Fred and his guitar but a couple of songs needed some extra sounds, so we banged on walls, smacked big pieces of tin together, etc., etc. I spent a couple of days mixing this week and Fred seems pretty happy with the results. He'll put it out in some form or another.

This weekend I'll be at the Oregon Country Fair in Veneta, OR. It is quite an event...I'll be sure to take some pics.

2008-07-10T06:41:00.000-07:00

Hey Folks,

First thing's first...the CD is now available online at CD Baby! It will be available for download sometime in the coming weeks, but for now you can purchase a physical copy here:

http://cdbaby.com/cd/ehrenebbage

So...I had a couple of great shows and made some new friends last weekend.

I played in Astoria, OR for the first time ever. Astoria is the northernmost coastal town in Oregon. It is a nice little place whose claim to fame is that The Goonies was filmed there. Oh, and some significant historical stuff, too...Anna and I made the drive in a few hours and were pleasantly surprised when we arrived.

The show was at a brand new venue called Redhare (www.myspace.com/redharegallery2). It's part gallery, part performance space...the owner, Scott Docherty, renovated his cool old space and turned it into a great music venue.

The show was not well attended, to say the least. Scott seemed to feel a little bad to have brought me there to play for such a small audience. He and I ended up talking for a long time about the purpose and motivation for being a musician (he toured for years with some very recognizable groups)...why make the effort when, so often, the returns are so small?

They aren't small. They're huge. Okay...only a handful of people were at the show. I didn't exactly feel like a rock god. Still, each person listened very closely and after the show I was able to talk with all of them. They sincerely appreciated my effort, and I theirs. A few of them walked away with my CD. It was good.

The next day Anna and I drove to Seattle. The Dimes had a show at The Sunset...it had been a while since I last saw the boys and I was looking forward to catching up and playing the tunes.

We played right before Slender Means, a great poppy rock band that made me think of Elvis Costello. Our set was fun...seemed to go by too fast, though.

All in all it was a great weekend. I felt lucky to see and do such cool things, and I felt inspired and invigorated. I spent a lot of time thinking about how fortunate I am to be able to do this for a living. It gave me some ideas for the theme of my blog. I think I'll turn it into a sort of journal about the challenges and rewards of being a small-time songwriter trying to carve out a place in the world.

To sum it up:

Yes, I'd like to play for larger audiences. Yes, I'd like to be more financially stable. Yes, I'd like to be recognized for the work I've done and will do. But what is the purpose and motivation? Fame? Fortune? Not really. Read on...

Keepin' On

2008-05-22T18:42:00.001-07:00

Man...there's an endless amount of work to be done. That's a good thing!

I'm doing what I can to get the word out about the new record. I try to post something on a new site every day, make posters, book a show, etc., etc. There's always something else to be done. A couple of nights ago I stayed up until 5 am with my buddy John Shipe, mixing his new record. So it goes.

I was thinking about the workload; wondering how it might translate into a more viable music career, wondering if I'm spending enough time doing the right things...it dawned on me (again) that I am lucky to have so much on my plate...I get to play music with great people quite often, and I only occasionally have to do non-music related work for money. Not too shabby!

Point is, it's all about spending time doing what you love. Yes, it's a cliche, but it's true.

I'm going to walk the dog now.

Seasons

2008-05-17T07:44:00.000-07:00

Ahhh...the first hint of summer. Oregon winters are long. True, I spent this winter in Los Angeles going for runs at the beach and buying fruit at the farmer's markets...still, I've been in Eugene since February and it has been gray, gray, gray.

The emergence of the sun seems like a metaphor. There is a changing of seasons for me...the process of making a record is long and in most cases everyone is ready for it to be done before it's actually complete. I feel a distinct sense of relief...like the first day of hot weather.

Now I can move on to other things. I'll be booking shows, sending the record out for reviews, trying to get it on radio and tv, etc. It's exciting to start a new phase of the project. I have no idea what it will bring, how far it will reach, what to expect...I guess I'm just glad to have made an addition to the body of work, and to have a chance to give it a push.

I'm going camping.

And now...

2008-05-14T07:37:00.000-07:00

Okay...the record is done. Wow.

Almost a year ago I started work on a new record. My plan was to do everything myself as I had on the EP. I didn't really want to do it that way...I just didn't see many options. After a month or so of writing and recording, I was not excited by the results. I got anxious...it felt very important to me to improve upon my last effort and I wasn't quite hitting the mark. I decided to ask around a bit and see if I could find someone to come on board and produce the record. Zac Rae offered his services and I said 'yes, please'.

Zac has a great studio in Burbank, CA. The plan was to work there whenever he had a break from the rest of his busy schedule. I decided that it would make more sense to just move to LA than to travel back and forth for months and months. I moved.

Zac put together a band to play on the record. I was a little hesitant at first; I wasn't sure that slick LA session players would get the right feeling across. Zac said 'they're great'. Man...they really are. Blair Sinta and Sean Hurley (drums and bass, respectively) came in for two days and recorded all of their parts. 11 songs, two days. They hadn't ever heard the songs before. They really, really sounded great. David Immergluck came in for one day and played pedal steel, mandolin and dobro on half of the record. Excellent. Mike Farrell came for an afternoon and played accordion on a couple of tunes. Nice. Alexis Stevens sang on two of the songs and sounded great.

Then Zac and I went to work, chipping away at the record here and there over the course of the next few months. All in all, I'd say the album took 21 days, give or take a few, to record.

It was great...Zac worked extremely hard and kept his eye on the ball the whole time. He's a pro.

The result is 'Ten Cent Souvenir'. I am very happy with it...I've heard it over and over again and it still holds up. I wouldn't change much at all.

So, I'll start the process of getting the word out. I'll play shows, send it off for reviews, try to get it on the radio, etc. Hopefully it will find its way to the surface somewhere, somehow. We'll see!

The 3 Hour Tour!!!

2008-03-13T08:29:00.000-07:00

I just confirmed a spot on the 3 Hour Tour in Newport Beach, CA on Sunday, May 4th, 2008. It’s 1 boat, 1 afternoon, 1 dozen musicians (including me!) and 200 fans of music and it’s going to be a blast! Confirmed acts include Shane Alexander, Aaron Beaumont, Ernie Halter, Josh Hoge, Sonia Leigh, Jay Nash, Chris Pierce, Amber Rubarth, Joey Ryan, Dawn Thomas and Tyrone Wells (subject to change without notice).   Tickets go on sale Saturday, March 15th. They're expected to sell out quickly and are $50 + $2 PayPal service fee per person (all ages, 21+ recommended) and include: an afternoon on a yacht, access to all performances, a hearty buffet and a compilation CD.

A Dime

2008-03-11T11:40:00.000-07:00

I tried to keep it down as long as I could but it wouldn't stay. I called up to the guy who was driving. "Hey Ryan...could you pull over? I'm going to throw up." That was the second to last day on tour with The Dimes.

The Dimes is a band from Portland. I've gotten to know them over the past few years because we've played a number of shows together in Portland and Eugene. They are a great band and their new record is very good. They're getting some attention from college radio stations and magazines like Spin, and they're working hard to keep the momentum going. They have been wanting to add another musician to fill out their live show so they asked me. I said yes, please. My first tour with them was last week, a quick little run to California's Bay Area.

They picked me up around 10pm. We drove through the night to make it in time for our first engagement at the campus radio station at Stanford. None of us got more than a couple of hours of low-quality sleep and we were all pretty foggy by the time we arrived in Palo Alto. Most of the day was a blur; we played three times in various places around the south bay, went to a cool music store, and ate at a mexican restaurant that served beergaritas. I couldn't partake...I was just too tired.

The next day was great. I was refreshed. We slept at Pierre's friend's office in Berkeley and after a tasty breakfast at Tomate we were ready to rock.

The next couple of days were fun. We played a few shows for fresh-faced college students who seemed to really like what we were doing. I liked what we were doing too. We played a great little place called Monterey Live, in Monterey. The folks at the venue were great...Josh the booker made us feel very comfy and at the end of the night he came out of the kitchen carrying baskets full of quesadillas for us to eat. Delish. He told us about a party by the beach and, despite the fact that we had to rise early the next morning to make the seven hour drive back to Oregon, we went. I kept my cool...I wasn't feeling up to being rowdy.

After not enough sleep we got in the van and went to Compagno's Deli where the guys introduced me to Bennett Compagno. This guy was great. He made us sandwiches the size of small children and as a special treat he gave us all pieces of cake equal in size to the huge sandwiches, on the house. We thanked Bennett, took our sandwiches and cake, and headed north.

We left late. We were scheduled to play two shows: a benefit for a friend of the band and a short opening set at a bar in Ashland and we were cutting it very close. I had a bit of a headache so I decided to get some sleep. I woke up an hour later...the mild headache I went to sleep with had become almost unbearable. I don't get headaches often and I honestly never quite understood what people meant when they described the experience. This was awful...it made me nauseous. It wasn't long before I had to have the guys pull the van over so I could throw up Bennett Campagno's sandwich and cake on the gravel shoulder of Interstate 5.

We made it to Medford in time to play a quick little acoustic set. Then we hustled down to Ashland to play a last-minute show opening for a local blues band at a place called Alex's. I was feeling well enough by then to have a plate of quesadillas. Ah, quesadillas. These last two shows were a lot of fun...we really seemed to play with some authority and cohesion.

We're playing again at Dante's in Portland this week...I'm looking forward to playing the tunes with the guys again.

Last Days in Los Angeles part 2

2008-02-13T00:47:00.000-08:00

The hourglass is down to its last few grains of sand, so to speak. I'm trying to fit as much in as I can before I go. It's been a busy week!

I wrote a tune with Priscilla Ahn yesterday. She's great! We debuted the tune last night at a benefit for Doctors Without Borders at the Hotel Cafe. Good cause, lots of nice folks. Good stuff. Priscilla's new record will be released sometime soon on Blue Note...I heard it recently and it's really very good.

A few hours ago I was at Kirk Wheeler's house. Kirk is mixing the record (and doing a wonderful job, I might add). Sounds like he'll have it done sometime in the next few weeks. Woo hoo! He is also a great songwriter and has just released a record of his own. Track him down at www.kirkwheelermusic.com

Kirk turned me on to a webite...www.last.fm

It looks like a great music-based networking site. So far so good.

I'm sleepy.

Goodnight.

Last days in Los Angeles part 1

2008-02-07T18:41:00.000-08:00

Well, the record is really very close to completion. Close enough for me to make plans to move back to Oregon, anyway. My sweetie is going to fly down in a week, we'll spend a day hanging out at the beach, and then pack up and drive home. I'm excited.

It's hard to believe I've been here since October. I made a lot of progress in the way of carving out a life for myself here. There are things that I've found in Los Angeles that are specific to this place and I'll miss them. Ultimately, though, there are great rewards to be found elsewhere. I really like Oregon and I'll be happy to be there again. At least until I find somewhere else to go.

I'll always associate my time here with little things. I ate a lot of Trader Joe's beans and rice. I spent a lot of time on the patio listening to the freeway sounds. I spent a lot of time at a standstill on the 405 north.

It's interesting to experience such important life events without the company of long-time friends or family. I made some great friends here and I have really enjoyed them. Still, they don't know the significance of this time in the context of the rest of my life. I guess sometimes this music thing can get a little lonely in that way.

So, I'll be home again soon. This time I'll have a record, an education, and some new friends to show for all of my effort. Nice!

Tune

2008-01-25T09:16:00.000-08:00

Well, the record is close to completion. A little more recording, some mixing, and it will be done!

I realized that I haven't posted a new tune in a long while, so I added 'Earthquakes' to the player. I recorded this one at home...cheap and dirty but it will likely appear on the record.

I hope you enjoy!

New Year

2008-01-08T08:38:00.000-08:00

It's a new year! Perhaps a resolution is in order? Maybe, but I'll keep it to myself.

I've been in Oregon for a few weeks now. It's been nice. I've played a handfull of shows, and I have been able to spend a little time with friends and family. Exactly the way the holidays should be spent, in my opinion.

I've been considering my plans for the next year. I have built some momentum...how should I keep it going in the right direction? My experience in Los Angeles has been amazing; I have met and worked with great musicians and excellent people. I have learned more than I thought was possible in a matter of a couple of months. Soon, I'll have a record. Not too shabby! So I wonder what the next step should be. I don't seem to have trouble finding opportunities...it's more a matter of picking the right ones and letting the others go by.

I think the coming year will be fun. I'm excited to release my first solo record. I'm excited to have songs on a couple of other artists' records. I have a couple of excellent touring opportunities on the horizon...good stuff!

Yup

2007-12-06T09:46:00.000-08:00

The guilt, the guilt. I haven't written in a while and it's mostly because I'm scared.

Not scared, really. Just busy.

I have been having a fantastic time here in Los Angeles. First of all, it's not raining! It rained for a day last week but I got the feeling that it was more for show than anything. Honestly, I wasn't impressed.

The album has been on hold since before Thanksgiving. We're resuming work today...It's the last turn before the homestretch. I'm excited to get back in there.

I've been getting to know the locals. There is a genuine soul beneath the concrete-crusted exterior of this place. I've seen lots of shows and all of them have been good. The songwriter scene is strong here, and very creative. People are friendly to each other and remember each other's names. People are excited to ask about each other's projects, and happy to talk about their own.

I like where I'm living quite a bit. It's cozy. Also, I found a late-night taco truck that parks itself a couple of blocks away and serves amazing carne asada tacos to people coming home from work or the bars. It's all I can do to keep myself from going there 20 times a day...

That's all for now.

The Record.

2007-11-09T08:45:00.001-08:00

Man...time flies. Really.

I left Eugene for Los Angeles. Eugene was nice enough, but she just couldn't give me what I needed. I suppose I wasn't as good to her as I could have been. Maybe we can work things out somewhere down the road.

Los Angeles is exciting! I have been here for a few weeks now, and I'm settling in. I hit the ground running; a couple days after I arrived I began work on The Record (I capitalize because it feels more real in proper noun form). Zac Rae offered to produce The Record in his studio, 'The Bank'. Burbank, California. Suburbs. It has been great, and Zac's involvement has been truly wonderful. For 10 days he and I worked, elbow to elbow, for long hours with only the occasional break to visit the taco stand next door. We weren't totally alone, though. Blair Sinta (drums) and Sean Hurley (bass) came in for two days and played some amazing stuff. We did nine songs in that short time and I'm really happy with the results. All three guys are talented in ways that I've only read about in music magazines. I felt lucky and silly at the same time. It was like fantasy baseball camp, where you get to spend a week playing ball alongside the pros. Oh...as an extra special treat, David Immergluck came by for a few hours and played some beautiful pedal steel, mandolin, and dobro. It was spicy.

There's still a bit of work to do before we mix. I'm aiming for completion this year, with a release in early '08. Totally feasible, and somewhat likely to happen.

Man...seems like I move from one transitional phase to the next. I wonder if I have grown so accustomed to constant motion that I actually seek it out. Maybe so.

I moved into a place in Culver City, adjacent to Venice. It's nice to walk to Trader Joe's and the chinese restaurant around the corner. It's nice to drive a mile or two to the beach.

I just took a temporary job teaching enrichment classes in an after school program for elementary school kids. I'll do it through December and see if I want to continue...I'm glad to have something to think about besides my career. Kids are refreshing.

Wow...I feel like a rusty writer. My blog muscles are flabby. Sorry for the absence, and I'll try to stay on track from now on.

Los Angeles!

2007-10-16T21:21:00.000-07:00

So...

I'm in Los Angeles. I'll be making a record next week and I'm pretty excited about it. Zac Rae is producing...he's a very, very talented guy and I can hardly wait to work with him. It'll be an education for me, for sure.

I think I'm going to live here for a while. It is one of those times in life when all signs point in the same direction and it would be foolish to ignore them. I can't say for sure how long I'll stay...I'll find a job somewhere and try to immerse myself in the songwriter scene...hopefully I'll make some progress.

I'm heading out to see Priscilla Ahn tonight...she's a great singer/songwriter with a fantastic voice. She and I spent an afternoon recording one of her tunes last year and it was big fun...it'll be nice to see her play.

If any of you happen to run a bar/restaurant/coffee shop in the area and feel like employing me, get in touch. I also accept cash donations.

Testing, testing

2007-10-04T08:22:00.000-07:00

wintertime comes
warning in advance that
it is on its way

trees wave their red and orange goodnights
and slowly undress and prepare themselves
for the long sleep

creatures get their jobs done;
collect some food,
grow their hair out
and hope that their babies
grew big enough this spring and summer
to make it through a winter alone
should they need to

i say my goodbyes to the summer things.
for months they have been there
when i looked out the window
or walked out amongst them.

they have been my friends.

when i wanted a body to lean against
every tree offered its own

when i wanted to gaze into deep eyes
the pond sat still in front of me
dark and unblinking

i have an idea to go south this winter
so i say my goodbyes.

i say them silently
(i think nature is telepathic)

things l like

2007-09-28T10:03:00.000-07:00

This week, I have come across a few things for the first time and revisited a few old favorites. These are at the top of my list:

(book) Mary Oliver

(music) Dan Jones' record "For Your Radio" (sorry Dan, I know it's old but it's so good!) It's on Itunes.

(artist) Richard Serra

(brainless entertainment) This guy on YouTube: watch the Santana one
http://www.youtube.com/profile_videos?user=StSanders&p=r

(documentary) The Fog of War

What's your list?

Thinkin'

2007-09-25T11:20:00.000-07:00

I had a thought.

It's funny that the world just is. It does its thing...rolls right along so steady and un self conscious. It has no opinion of itself. It is not a bad world or a good one in its own eyes.

In our eyes, though, the world can be both. We judge it as though it has some responsibility for the way it is. When we see the world as being cold and unhelpful we feel angrily towards it. We want it to change its ways and to treat us kindly.

When we see the world as a friend, it is our best friend. We laugh with it and are happy to be in its presence. We say things to the world like "Your sun sure looks nice today, and your grass is so soft!" On these days, if the world has any shortcomings they are hardly noticed.

I suppose that it is part of our nature to look outward as much as inward. It must be helpful to project ourselves upon something outside of us. That way, we can examine and understand, circle around and look from all sides. We are good at projecting. Are we good at examining?

We are so used to hearing the cliches: 'Life is what you make of it'. It rolls off the tongue easily and we say it, knowing that it is true but hardly considering the depth of the statement.

So we project ourselves like a picture on a wall, sometimes appreciating the beauty and style of life, sometimes only seeing it for its smudges and erase marks.

The world, the picture, just is what it is. It is both beauty and smudges.

Show (s)

2007-09-19T07:37:00.000-07:00

Well, things are moving right along. I'm playing a show tonight in Eugene with some good buddies. Sean Peterson and Rich Sellars will help me rock out at Sam Bond's Garage, and The Dimes will rock out there too. I like Rich, Sean and The Dimes very much.

I realized recently that I have some baggage left over from growing up playing baseball. Ballplayers, you see, are very superstitious. You'll never see a guy step on the chalk line on his way out to the field. Mitts, bats and hats might be lucky or unlucky. Each guy has his own set of things which he believes, if done properly (or not done at all), might influence the outcome of the game. Some guys wear the same undershirt every time they play. Some guys don't shave on game day.

I haven't played organized baseball in years but I'm still a little superstitious. I'd like to let you all know about some fun news related to making the record but I'm afraid I might jinx it and everything will fall through. I can't help it.

As soon as my plans are firm and unlikely to change, I'll clue everyone in.

In the meantime, come to a show! I'll be in Chicago soon, among other places. Also, my old bandmates, Justin King and the Apologies, are about to embark on another national tour. Check their schedule...they're probably coming to a town near you!

Mastan Music

2007-09-14T15:31:00.000-07:00

I met a couple of cool folks at the Eugene Celebration and I thought you all should know about them...

Mastan Music (www.mastanmusic.com) is run by a couple of guys who are working pretty hard to help the Northwest music scene. They run a recording studio in Portland and host a podcast spotlighting Northwest artists. They were kind enough to play one of my tunes on their most recent podcast...thanks guys! Check out episode 32.

Went to a show

2007-09-12T10:03:00.000-07:00

I saw some great music last week and I think I may have been bitten by the tour bug.

A friend of mine called and said "I'm working for A Fine Frenzy...wanna come to the show?" They were playing with Brandi Carlile, who I really like. I went.

A Fine Frenzy is a trio led by songwriter/pianist Alison Sudol. The tunes are mostly mid tempo, dreamy, Tori Amos-ish...well supported by the keyboard player and drummer, who are both extremely creative dudes. My buddy was their tour manager so I got to hang out a bit with the band. Very nice!

I was struck by a few things while watching the show. The band really made the most of their tools. The tunes were well arranged and played and the choice of sounds and instruments was great. There was no bass player, but I didn't miss it. They played with subtlety in a way that most bands don't. It was cool.

As I watched them I thought about how much I enjoy the process of writing, arranging and performing music. I thought about how great it is to play with musicians who bring their own voice to the songs, and who elevate the whole experience. It was inspiring.

Brandi Carlile was great too. She brings 100% every time.

I'd like to hit the road...I'm getting antsy.

In the studio

2007-09-04T10:00:00.000-07:00

It was a good weekend. I was in the studio from Wednesday night to Monday afternoon with Alexis Stevens; she's a talented songwriter and a good friend. She and I, with the help of Scott Hedrick and Dave Snider, worked hard. Probably about 14 hours each day, I'd imagine. We came up with a cool sound, described by our friend John as 'desert music'. Scott's drumming was great, Dave played amazing bass, baritone, and banjo, and Alexis sang and played like an angel. I pushed buttons, moved faders, positioned microphones, and ate Erin's Kettle Corn by the bushel. I played a little guitar and sang, too. Justin King let us use his place and we all really appreciated it.

There were some magic moments for sure. Recording is a funny process; sometimes you happen upon a single thing, maybe a bass line or a vocal harmony, that breaks the song wide open and defines its character in a whole new way. It's as distinct a feeling as if you walked down a street in Cottage Grove, turned a corner, and found yourself in Times Square. I love it.

One night, after a particularly long day, Alexis and I were tired but not ready to go to sleep. We ended up sitting at the table listening to some of our favorite songs on my little laptop speakers and wondering how people like Patty Griffin ever got so good. We sat in silence while the songs played, eating tortilla chips and taking big swallows of cold beer. A song would finish, we'd tell about the first time we'd heard it or why we liked it, and then one of us would suggest another song to listen to. It was almost like a musical...we were having a conversation and the dialogue was continued and supported through the music.

I'll mix her record this month and hopefully it'll make its way out into the world sometime soon.

I've been listening to Lucinda Willams' 'West'. It took me a couple of listens to get into it but now I love it. It's one for the headphones...each song is so well recorded and there are so many subtleties that are lost when listening through regular speakers. Her voice is amazing.

I upped my caffeine dosage to about double the usual amount...I'll be scaling it back down this week. I might be grumpy.

Ah, Tuesday

2007-08-28T17:13:00.000-07:00

I have spent the past few days doing whatever I wanted to do. I saw two movies in the theater and went to the art museum. I sat outside Sweet Life bakery and read and wrote. I finished the last Harry Potter book (very important literature) and started Maugham's "The Razor's Edge", which was loaned to me by a friend who has never yet suggested a book that I didn't enjoy. I wrote lots of lyrics, some of which might actually be used.

I rode my XS 650 to Oakridge, a little mountain town east of Eugene, and had a turkey and brie sandwich at a nice little hippie cafe. I read part of a funny essay by Carol Bly about paranoids. The only bit of responsibility I imposed upon myself was to pick up a friend at the airport. Her flight was delayed twice and it made no difference to me...I had nothing else to do.

Normally, when I need do have this sort of weekend I go camping or visit a friend out of town. Granted, I hardly ever do it, but sometimes I need the time to myself. I get in ruts and routines. Often, they are self-imposed for the sake of feeling productive and staying busy. At some point I realize that I am experiencing diminishing returns and need to change things up a bit.

It wasn't all play...as I mentioned, I wrote some lyrics that I think I like. Also, I think I may have found myself in an amazing situation in regards to the record I'm trying to make. No, I haven't landed a record deal. I have, though, made a decision that makes me very happy and excited. I'll explain more as soon as it's all firmed up...sorry for the crypticism. I don't want to jinx my plans!

Apologies

2007-08-22T08:41:00.001-07:00

I'd like to start this one with a couple of apologies. First, I've been referring to the band Reily as Riley. Small error (and it's partly their fault for choosing a weird spelling), but I felt a large dumb sort of feeling when I discovered my mistake. Sorry guys. For those of you who don't know, Reily is the band I recorded last week, and with whom I played a show last night in Seattle. They are great songwriters and excellent guys, and we had wonderful times together. And I've been spelling their name incorrectly.

Number two, I need to apologize to everyone, including myself, for falling off the blog wagon each of the two last weeks. I've been posting a blog every Tuesday for a while now, per the advice of my publicist friend Leona, but recently it has been like pulling my own teeth to get an entry up on schedule. I'm sorry. I was wrong. Please forgive me.

So, I'm in Seattle. It's raining and fall seems like it's just around the corner. I played a fun show last night; Reily hosted an art auction/concert to raise funds for their record and they asked me to play. It was exactly the sort of thing I love being involved in; artists of different sorts together, showing their stuff and talking about it, all doing what they can to spread the word. I met a guy who has a little studio in a remote mountain area of Japan where he makes electronic music with his wife...how cool is that? I sometimes forget how valuable and inspiring it is to just hang out with other artsy types. I often prioritize holing myself up in a studio or a basement to write or record, thinking that I need to put in the hours and stay on task; sometimes it's better to get out and mingle a bit.

Anyway, I'm sorry for my recent missteps. I'll be good, I promise.

In the studio, on the stage

2007-08-17T07:58:00.000-07:00

It’s quiet around the house this morning. Nice, because I actually have a second to sit down and write something. The past week has been a flurry of activity from early morning to late night.

The Jonny Lang/ Los Lonely Boys show at the Cuthbert went well. It was great to play the tunes in front of so many people and to receive a warm response. The guys in my band were great…it was an all-around success.

All of the other days this week have been spent in the studio with the Seattle-based band Riley. At its’ heart, Riley is two songwriters, Dave and Grant, who have been writing and playing together for a few years. They made their last record in their garage and it was great…this time they decided to move to a different studio. They decided on Blackberry Hill and I was asked to help engineer and co-produce.

It’s been a lot of fun working with/for these guys. They are extremely nice dudes and are both very talented and creative. We’ve been putting in 12 or 14 hour days all week and I’m still excited to get back to it each morning. The music is excellent…we’ve been having fun getting it on tape.

I’m going to Seattle on Sunday to see friends and to play at Riley’s art auction. Then I’ll come home and work on my record for a week or so before I start working on Alexis Stevens’ project. She’s another extremely talented writer whose music I love…it’ll be great!

I’m getting tired again…oh well. I’m happy to stay busy. I’m fortunate to have the chance to do these things and I’m not about to turn them down just to get a little extra sleep.

Land On You

2007-08-09T08:22:00.000-07:00

I've posted a demo version of "Land On You" on the Myspace page...feedback is welcome!

www.myspace.com/ehrenebbage

Full, full, full

2007-08-07T08:00:00.000-07:00

My mouth is full, metaphorically speaking, and I hope I haven't bitten off more than I can chew.

It's the nature of this profession to have periods of little activity followed by periods of intense activity. When it rains, it pours, right? It just started raining! The next two weeks will be filled with outrageously fun musical happenings...there will be almost no time to work on the record.

I mentioned the cool show coming up next week; I get to open for Jonny Lang and Los Lonely Boys at one of Eugene's best concert venues, the Cuthbert Amphitheater. When the promoter called to offer me the spot he told me that he needed a full band. I told him that my band would be ready. Then I called some friends and asked if they wanted to join a band. Luckily, they all said yes. I have been feeling anxious about the idea of playing these tunes for an audience of thousands with a band that is less than a month old; usually it takes lots of rehearsals and shows to whip a band into shape, and we just don't have that luxury. I've chewed fingernails thinking about it. Well, we had another rehearsal last night and many of my concerns have been alleviated. These guys are great musicians (I already knew that...that's why I asked them!) but more importantly they've spent some time listening and learning the songs. The tunes are really coming together and I think we have a decent shot at sounding pretty good! It makes me happy.

A few days after this show, I'll go back to the amphitheater to play in the Floydian Slips, a Pink Floyd tribute band. This is a hugely popular local event; once a year we get together and play some classic Floyd tunes, complete with laser light show, and a few thousand people come to see it. It's extremely fun. Anyway, I still need to learn two hours of music before our rehearsal on Sunday.

On top of it all, I agreed to help record a band all next week. They're called Riley, and they're a cool Seattle band with a bit of a following. I'm excited to do this...it'll be great experience and a lot of fun...all day, every day during an already busy week.

Also, I've been working with my friends Kyle and Leona on a t-shirt design...I'm no graphic designer and I have no business being involved in this stuff, but I'm doing it anyway. The shirts should be ready by next week.

Even my blog is a little too full...I have lots more to say, including my thoughts about working at an all day hip hop show, and my ideas about scrapping this record and re-doing it with another producer. I'll write again soon.

JK

2007-08-02T08:20:00.000-07:00

Hey all,

My former bandmates, Justin, Drew, and Nadir, are up to some exciting stuff and I thought I should mention it. First, it looks like they are close to finishing editing the video we shot for 'Bright and Dirty Lights'. Here's a sample they put together:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PdmwcSeBOms

Also, they're going to Korea at the end of the month and touring the US as soon as they get home. Not too shabby. Keep track of their progress at:

www.myspace.com/justinkingband

Nice work, guys.

Eugene blues

2007-07-31T17:23:00.000-07:00

I'm not as good at maintaining routines as I'd like to be. I have a hard time adhering to schedules, even when they're self-imposed. This is not always the case; I exercise every day, alternating between running and swimming. I look forward to it and do it faithfully, rain or shine. So, why can't I make myself sit down and write every day? Who knows. Maybe the key is to find the routines that work, not work to make the routines fit.

For a few weeks now I've been getting up every day between six and seven AM and doing chores. My folks have horses and, especially since my mom broke her finger, they can always use an extra hand. So I've put myself on an early-to-bed schedule. Well...a few nights ago a friend had a housewarming party and I felt the need to attend. It was fun; I talked about fishing with a guy, Minnesota with a girl, et., etc. It was close to my bedtime when someone suggested that we move to the bar a block away. I was about to make the usual excuses but, for some reason, I chose to go along with the gang. I would be tired the next morning, for sure. I didn't care. I'm reckless.

The Vet's Club is just what the name implies...kind of an 'old guy' hangout. Vinyl seats and smoke stains on the walls...clientele of the older-middle-aged variety. We walked up and milled around the entrance, trying to decide if it was worth it to pay the cover charge to get in. After a few minutes of this the door guy let us in for free. Nice. I walked to the bar and placed my order, and I was halfway through my first swallow when I realized that the blues band on stage was pretty good. Wait...really good! I recognized the hammond player; he's been kicking around Eugene for years and years. I didn't know the other guys in the band. The drummer was a young guy, everyone else was fifty or so, and he was rocking pretty hard and seemed to really love it. The other guys were great, too. I haven't cared to listen to a blues guitar solo for about five years but these guys were undeniably good. It was perfect; funky bar, dim lights, blues band, cold beer. I really liked it and I didn't even think about leaving until they finished their set. I walked out of there feeling pretty inspired and like I had become reacquainted with an old friend. It's good to watch people do what they love. It's also good to know when to bend your own rules.

The past couple of days have been so-so in regards to the record. I've been focusing in on the near view, thinking about lyrics and bits and pieces. I need to pull back a bit and try to get a handle on the overall record. I feel good about the way each song is coming along but I'm not sure how they'll all fit together as a whole. One of the challenges of doing everything yourself is maintaining perspective, or multiple perspectives. Forest for the trees and so on. I often think about the conversations I had with Rob Schnapf while we were working on the Justin record. He found the zoom-in, zoom-out thing to be a challenge too. He handled it quite well. It's just part of the role of the producer to keep track of this kind of stuff. I have found myself wishing I had another producer to work with. At the same time, I want to learn everything I can through this process. I have a feeling that the value of making this record will mostly be in the education I am receiving by doing it this way.

There.

Shows

2007-07-28T12:38:00.000-07:00

Hey folks,

I have a couple of big shows in Eugene in August...both are at the Cuthbert Amphitheater and each one will be huge fun!

August 14
I open for Jonny Lang and Los Lonely Boys! I've asked a few of my good friends to join me for this one...it'll be the first full band show I've played in a while! Very exciting...

August 18
The Floydian Slips return! This 'band' began ten years ago when a few friends decided to learn Pink Floyd's 'Dark Side of the Moon'. It was very well recieved and the show has grown like a well-fed pig. This one promises to be the largest one yet, with an expected audience of several thousand Floyd fans. I'll be strumming along on my acoustic guitar, singing backups, and wondering how this happened.

Still working away on the record, mind you. See you soon!

Working away...

2007-07-24T17:22:00.000-07:00

Good news, good news. The tunes are coming along nicely this week. I have 'Land on You' mostly done and I've started recording another brand new one. Justin King has been generous enough to let me use his studio every once in a while, so my anxiety about getting good sounds is greatly reduced. I'm not sure if I've ever given Justin his due thanks...he has helped many times in many ways.

I met with a new friend for coffee yesterday. Brooke is a Eugenian who has been out in the world for the past few years and she has a ton of experience as a songwriter. She and I are planning to get together this week to co-write. Co-writing is something that the Eugene community hardly ever does, but is totally commonplace in NY, LA, Nashville, Austin, etc. I'm glad to have met someone here who is hip to it.

I have a couple of production things coming up in August...I'm excited to have a chance to be part of someone else's creative process. The artists are both great...

A good friend, Jenny Queen, is about to record an album...she and I wrote a bunch of tunes last time I was in NY; hopefully a few of them will make the cut.

Still assembling songs for my record. I'd like to write one or two more tunes that aren't about love relationships...we'll see. Fiona Apple gets away with it.

I'll be exploring a new creek this week. Heard there are some great swimming holes nearby, in case you were wondering.

A little sideways

2007-07-22T07:18:00.000-07:00

A friend just alerted me to the fact that someone posted a clip from the Country Fair show on YouTube. Thanks! The song is a newer one called 'Land on You'...I'm not sure why it appears the way it does but it somehow makes sense that a video from the Country Fair came out sideways. Here's the link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EBofhD710Yk

Also, I plan to post a rough mix of this tune in a day or two...

On a side note: You know when you have a bad dream and, upon waking, you feel a great sense of relief? I had one like that last night. The Oakland A's had been eliminated from the playoffs.

Oregon Country Fair

2007-07-17T11:18:00.001-07:00

The Oregon Country Fair is a scene, to say the least. For three days each year the tiny town of Veneta, Oregon, is overrun by thousands of hippies. They come from all over to reunite and have been for over thirty years...it's a place where peace, love, and the ideals of the 60's generation rule. There are half a dozen stages or more...music is played 'round the clock. I played at 11 am on Saturday morning to an enthusiastic audience. I made some new friends and saw some old ones...

I spent most of each day behind the counter at my friend's tamale booth serving food to hungry fairgoers. The rest of the time was spent walking around, listening to bands, and watching folks go by. I didn't have time, space, or energy to write anything at all. I'm home again and anxious to spend some time with my guitar.

I'll start recording soon. I'm looking forward to it. There's a certain kind of creative head space that I've only experienced in the studio. All else takes the back seat and I focus entirely on the work. I think I'll have some friends play on the new songs...I like doing everything myself but I think it's better to have more folks involved. It's like dogs; purebreds are fancy but mutts are usually the most healthy and free of neuroses.

Perhaps I'll post some demos this week...

Up a creek

2007-07-10T15:06:00.000-07:00

I've been home for a couple of weeks now. It's the longest stretch of time I've spent in any one place all year. At first it felt like the brakes had been slammed on and I screeched to a halt amid a cloud of dust and burned rubber. I've done a thorough evaluation and, though I may have been shaken, nothing broke.

I'm back at the folks' house in the country, the purpose being to write and record more songs for a record. I have plenty of time every day to devote to the task, and plenty of life experience to write about. Still, it's not coming easily. So, I decided that I'd take some time to restore a sense of balance in my life in the hopes that I could trick myself into being more productive. Here's my internal dialogue:

Interior. FRUSTRATED WHINY SELF is staring at the wall.

RESPONSIBLE SELF: You should be writing and recording!

FRUSTRATED WHINY SELF: I don't have anything to write about. I'm tired and frustrated.

RS: Oh, I understand. You're right. We should just go fishing instead. You know, to restore balance.

FWS: Good idea! I like you. We should hang out more often!

Cut to: Standing in the middle of a large creek putting bait on a hook.

RS: Ahhh...nothing like the oudoors, eh Whiny?

FWS: Yep. Nothing beats it. The only thing I like better is writing, recording, and performing tunes.

RS: Really? You've had all this free time and you haven't done any of those things. I thought maybe you'd lost the spark.

FWS: Lost the spark? Never! Matter of fact, I think we should get out of this water and go back home to write!

RS: (Smiles to himself) Okay, Whiny. Whatever you want.

Eating, talking, playing.

2007-06-25T08:40:00.000-07:00

I took the weekend off, thank you very much...

Mike and Jenny invited me to go to Connecticut with them and I said 'yes, please', partly because it's one of the few states I hadn't seen and partly because their description of the place made it sound so nice.

We loaded up on Saturday morning and hit the road. Once we got out of the reach of New York City's sprawl it became a very pleasant drive through greenery and quaint old towns. We listened to science podcasts and songs the whole way up. In just under two hours we were in New England, which was just the way I pictured it.

Mike's family was gathering at Uncle Leo's place on Money Island. As legend has it, Captain Kidd buried his treasure there in the late 1600's. Today there are 20 or 30 summer homes overlooking the Long Island Sound. The place is gorgeous. We took the ferry over and had a look around. I met the family and felt comfy right away.

I chatted with an old guy named Cappy for a while. I told him about Oregon and he told me about everything. The Yankees game was on the radio so he told me his stories about playing trumpet at the ceremony at Yankee Stadium on 'Babe Ruth Day' in 1947, and how his son was recruited by the Yanks before he injured his wrist.

Mike and I decided to take a dip in the Sound. It was windy and everyone told us we were crazy, which made us even more determined to do it. It was cold but not frigid. Someone built a diving board on one of the granite rocks that stick out of the water.

I did a triple back flip with a twist but unfortunately it was not caught on tape.

We ate pasta and fresh seafood. Then we ate a lamb roast and chicken cutlets. Then we ate dessert and coffee. Cappy told me again about his son, who was recruited by the Yanks before his wrist injury.

We took the last ferry of the evening and saw the sun set over the water.

We spent the next day at Mike's folks' place. It was great...we ate, played ball, ate, played ball, ate, watched the ballgame, and ate.

I was too full to write songs this weekend.

I'll be in my own bed tomorrow night. It'll be nice. I'm looking forward to playing at Luna in Eugene, and to being around my friends and family for a while.

The weather is exciting

2007-06-20T07:40:00.000-07:00

I had such a routine going with all of this blogging; once every three or four days, with metaphors and common themes...leave it to New York to break me of a good habit.

Everything is going well out here. The weather is exciting; sunny days for the most part, with the occasional thunder-and-lightning storm. On Father's Day I went to Mike's folks' place about an hour outside of the city. His folks were gone somewhere. It was nice to be in the country. I talked to my dad on the phone...I made a passing comment about having doubt that I'm on the right track. He said I am and that I should keep going. I'll take that advice.

The rest of the time I've been writing. The purpose of this trip is to write with Jenny Queen, a friend and fellow songwriter whose last record did well enough to warrant a follow-up. She writes words and I write music...it's fun. We've written 5 songs so far and I believe we'll add a couple more before I go back home. She's happy with the results, which makes me happy.

I've spent some time in Prospect Park watching Little League ballgames. Mike and I got a whiffle ball and bat and played 9 innings. He won by 2. I'll get him next time.

I read 'Coraline' by Neil Gaiman. He's a great writer. I just started another one of his books called 'American Gods'. I'm getting through it pretty quickly.

Looks like I'll spend a fair amount of time at home this summer. I've decided that all of this moving around spreads me too thin. I need to buckle down and record some more tunes. I need to make a record. I've been listening to Lyle Lovett, Patty Griffin, and Lucinda Williams more than ever. I have a feeling that the record will reflect that. There's something so sincere about their music and I'd like to aim for the same thing. Plus, I'm totally enthralled by pedal steel guitar.

I'm in a coffee shop in Brooklyn. Zep's 'Rain Song' is playing on the stereo and it's raining outside.

Weather

2007-06-13T12:51:00.000-07:00

It never rains in Colorado except for every time I've ever been here, ever. For real. Every single time I come here the locals say "It doesn't usually rain so much. We usually see the sun 350 days a year!" Yesterday there was a big storm with thunder and rain and everything.

For a second I thought that I might have some effect on the weather systems, making it rain wherever I go. No...I remember there being a drought in California when I was a youngster. People were saying "If it's yellow, let it mellow..." and things of that nature. I have a vivid memory of a teacher explaining how to turn off the water while soaping and shampooing in the shower. Conserve, she said. It's for the environment. She told us not to water our lawns during the day, or at all if we could help it. At ten years old we were probably not making those decisions for our households. Still, it was good to know.

I've been thinking in metaphors and analogies lately. Food, gambling...I'll try another one.

It's either flood or drought, lately:

RECORD DEAL!
no record deal.
TOUR!
home, broke.
TOUR!
home, broke.
ETC!
etc.

What I mean to say is, life's weather is unpredictable and varies greatly from day to day. It seems like every time the sun comes out I can hardly get my shorts, towel, sunscreen, and flip flops out before it's raining again.

I don't mean this as a complaint. I'm learning things.

It's the same for everyone, especially in the music biz. I was just talking to a producer friend of mine about this very subject. He's well established and works steadily most of the time. Right now, though, he's not working at all. Why? Who knows...surely not for lack of talent, experience or connections. Drought.

I guess the key is to find ways to persist through any conditions. The happiest people are the ones who do this well.

Anyway, I have a couple of days left in Denver before I go to New York. I'll do a lot of writing while I'm there and I hope to come home with a batch of new material.

I booked a last minute show in Eugene on June 28th at Luna. Jessica Parsons-Taylor will be playing too...she's good! I'll have a little time in Eugene before I take another trip, this time to Nashville. Giddyup!

Betting in Las Vegas

2007-06-09T09:50:00.001-07:00

What is so enticing about putting money into a machine, pulling a handle and watching wheels spin? Does anyone really expect to win big? Is the activity really interesting enough to spend money on it? What are people thinking?

I pulled the handle and lost the last 25 cents of the two dollars I allowed myself to play. Las Vegas airport, 8:00 AM, and I was wasting time while I waited to board a plane to Denver. Slot machines in the airport...we're a funny people. I had been up for 4 hours already and I was feeling a bit punchy. I took deep drinks from my cup of coffee and thought about the previous night.

It was my last night in LA. I'd spent the day working, but in a relaxed manner. Nadir (former band mate and current lodging provider) and I went to Venice beach to have lunch with a friend. I spent the rest of the day trying to finish a new song about people who make bad decisions.

Nadir had a gig that night; I was torn...on one hand, he's my buddy and I wanted to show my support. On the other hand, it would mean staying out late and getting little sleep as I had to wake up at 4:30 am to get myself to the airport. I decided I needed to see the show. He had been hired by an actor-turned-musician, Bryan Greenberg, who is starring in a new show on tv. The club was full of youngish girls who wanted to get an in-person look at the hunky actor. It was quite a scene...a couple of famous faces and industry bigshots were there.

As expected, I got home later than I'd wanted to and I got just a few hours of restless sleep before I got up to go to the airport.

So my layover in Las Vegas got me thinking. Is playing a slot machine in an airport really so different from betting on a career as a musician? Like sacrificing money to the machine, a musician sacrifices parts of his/her life with the idea that it might pay off in the end. I try to work towards this career in a practical way, but there is still so much left to chance. So many things are entirely out of my control and all I can do is hope that I am dealt a hand that I can play with. It creates some stress but at the same time it's quite exciting.

Recipies and Metaphors Thereof.

2007-06-05T12:14:00.000-07:00

Life is like cooking from scratch with no recipe to follow. Yes, I'm attempting to be deep. Stay with me…

It's true. You have your refrigerator full of food, your cupboard full of seasonings and, if you're lucky, a little herb garden in the backyard. Maybe even a fruit tree, too. With these you make what you can. It's a process of trial and error, adjustments and discoveries. "Too much salt. A little sweeter. More protein needed." Unfortunately, you can't just stick to the same recipe every day, even if you find one you really like. Ingredients go bad. Tastes change. Etc., etc.

I use food for my metaphor because I'm hungry at the moment. Also, because it seems to work. Also, because I'm hungry.

Really, though. A month ago I was on tour with my friends, seeing the country, meeting new people in new places. It was a diet rich in heavy stuff; steak and eggs, cheese and beer. Full all the time. Then I made the decision to switch things up. I needed fruit and fiber. I needed fresh. I needed regularity.

I quit the band and said goodbye to my friends. It was time for me to push myself off in a new direction. It felt like jumping ship and rowing off in a little life raft out in the deep water and big swells of the ocean. Sorry…different metaphor. It felt like emptying my fridge and cupboard of its contents and then realizing that I would be hungry again soon.

Now I'm in the process of shopping for things to eat. Nice, because I can try new things and experiment a little. Difficult, because I need to eat every day and I don't exactly have the budget to stock the kitchen with good stuff to last.

I think I've worn this metaphor out.

What I mean to say is, here I am. So different from just a month ago. I'm in LA for a week trying to make something out of a few connections and the idea that I should write songs for a living. I have an idea of where to begin and what the end result should be, but the whole middle part is still very fuzzy. Do I sautee? Roast? Simmer? Barbeque?

I have to operate under the assumption that things will work out in the end. I just don't know where my next meal will come from, so to speak (I guess there's a little more to squeeze from the metaphor). I am not to the point of eating plant leaves or bugs, but I am starting to feel the hunger pangs coming on.

So, I'm working on my recipe. I've written two and a half songs in the past couple of days. Feels great; I hadn't written a song in weeks and weeks. I have my protein. Now I need some seasoning.